Saint John Paul II and the Dignity of Immigrants

Here are some excerpts from Pope Saint John Paul II’s “Message for World Migration Day,” November 21, 1999. He made it clear (as did his predecessors) that the dignity of immigrants is entailed by the dignity of every human person, created in the image of God, redeemed by the love of Jesus Christ. We who have been so greatly blest with an abundance of the goods of this world cannot close our hearts to immigrants in need. Through them, Jesus is calling us to conversion, fraternity, solidarity, and hospitality today just as He was 25 years ago.

On the threshold of the new millennium, humanity is marked by phenomena of intense mobility, while the awareness of being members of one family continues to grow in people's minds. Voluntary or forced migration increases opportunities for exchange among people of different cultures, religions, races and nationalities. Modern means of transport are ever more rapidly connecting one part of the globe to another, and every day borders are crossed by thousands of migrants, refugees, nomads and tourists.

The immediate reasons for the complex reality of human migration differ widely; its ultimate source, however, is the longing for a transcendent horizon of justice, freedom and peace. In short, it testifies to an anxiety which, however indirectly, refers to God, in whom alone man can find the full satisfaction of all his expectations.

Many countries make a considerable effort to welcome immigrants, many of whom, after overcoming the difficulties of adjustment, are well integrated into the host community. However, the misunderstandings that foreigners sometimes experience show the urgent need for a transformation of structures and a change of mentality…. 

In many regions of the world today people live in tragic situations of instability and uncertainty. It does not come as a surprise that in such contexts the poor and the destitute make plans to escape, to seek a new land that can offer them bread, dignity and peace. This is the migration of the desperate: men and women, often young, who have no alternative than to leave their own country to venture into the unknown. Every day thousands of people take even critical risks in their attempts to escape from a life with no future. Unfortunately, the reality they find in host nations is frequently a source of further disappointment.

At the same time, States with a relative abundance tend to tighten their borders under pressure from a public opinion disturbed by the. inconveniences that accompany the phenomenon of immigration. Society finds itself having to deal with the "clandestine", men and women in illegal situations, without any rights in a country that refuses to welcome them, victims of organized crime or of unscrupulous entrepreneurs….

The Church, Mother and Teacher, works so that every person's dignity is respected, the immigrant is welcomed as a brother or sister, and all humanity forms a united family which knows how to appreciate with discernment the different cultures which comprise it. In Jesus, God came seeking human hospitality. This is why he makes the willingness to welcome others in love a characteristic virtue of believers. He chose to be born into a family that found no lodging in Bethlehem (cf. Lk 2:7) and experienced exile in Egypt (cf. Mt 2:14). Jesus, who "had nowhere to lay his head" (Mt 8:20), asked those he met for hospitality. To Zacchaeus he said: "I must stay at your house today" (Lk 19:5). He even compared himself to a foreigner in need of shelter: "I was a stranger and you welcomed me" (Mt 25:35). In sending his disciples out on mission, Jesus makes the hospitality they will enjoy an act that concerns him personally: "He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me" (Mt 10:40)….

In the context of a human mobility that has expanded everywhere, [Christ’s] invitation to hospitality becomes timely and urgent. How can the baptized claim to welcome Christ if they close the door to the foreigner who comes knocking? "If anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?" (1 Jn 3:17).

The Son of God became man to reach out to all, giving preference to the least ones, the outcast, the stranger…. The Church hears the suffering cry of all who are uprooted from their own land, of families forcefully separated, of those who, in the rapid changes of our day, are unable to find a stable home anywhere. She senses the anguish of those without rights, without any security, at the mercy of every kind of exploitation, and she supports them in their unhappiness.

In all the societies of the world the figure of the exile, the refugee, the deportee, the clandestine, the migrant and the "street people" … for believers becomes a call to change their mentality and their life, in accordance with Christ's appeal: "Repent, and believe in the Gospel" (Mk 1:15).

In its highest and most demanding motivation, this call to conversion certainly includes the effective recognition of the rights of migrants: "It is urgent in their regard that one know how to overcome a strictly nationalistic attitude to create a State which recognizes their right to emigration and encourages their integration.... It is the duty of all—and especially Christians—to work energetically to establish the universal brotherhood which is the indispensable basis of true justice and a condition for lasting peace" (Paul VI, Encyclical Octogesima Adveniens, n. 17).

Working for the unity of the human family means being committed to the rejection of all discrimination based on race, culture or religion as contrary to God's plan. It means bearing witness to a fraternal life based on the Gospel, which respects cultural differences and is open to sincere and trustful dialogue. It includes the advancement of everyone's right to be able to live peacefully in his own country, as well as attentive concern that in every State immigration laws be based on the recognition of fundamental human rights.

“The Lord Protects Strangers”

…the Lord protects strangers…

St Thomas Aquinas and the Act of Be-ing

For the feast of St Thomas Aquinas, I am posting an excerpt from my book The Created Person and the Mystery of God, published a long long time ago (in 2003). This selection introduces Thomas's great insight into the real distinction between essence and existence. It is only a sketch of the argument within the context of a larger presentation, but it might serve as a reminder of why St Thomas is so important not only as a Doctor of the Church but also as a philosopher who makes a monumental contribution to human understanding.

What follows is the excerpt from my 2003 book (which is still available for purchase - open THIS LINK if you're interested). Happy Feast of St Thomas!

In a small early treatise entitled De Ente et Essentia, St Thomas proposes an argument for the existence of God which takes as its starting point not the various activities and characteristics of created things, but their most fundamental "activity" - their very act of existing. In chapter five of De Ente et Essentia, Thomas argues that, with regard to all of the things that we encounter, "what they are" cannot explain the fact that they actually do exist in reality. Therefore their existence must be explained in terms of Something Else; it must be caused by Something Else.

The main principle that St Thomas develops in this little treatise is that there is a real distinction between essence and existence, between the essentially integrated complexus of specifications that define what something is, and the actualization of that specificity, the "placing" of it into the real universe of existence.

The existing of something - its esse (to use the Latin infinitive for the verb "to be"), the act by which it "is" - is distinct from "what it is," its essence. Existing introduces another dimension beyond everything we can say about what a thing is. When I say "the horse exists," I take the whole richly envisioned description of "horse" that I an able to apprehend and examine with my mind, and I affirm "something else" with regard to the horse, something that is not part of the description of a horse; I judge an instance of this essence (the "whatness" of horse, "horseness") to be there in reality. The horse is. The horse is existing.

Notice something very important here: existing is an act. It is the most fundamental of all acts. To exist is dynamic, radically dynamic. The reason why we think of existing as static is because we are surrounded by it everywhere and therefore inclined to ignore it or regard it as commonplace. But things are not just plopped around us - just "there," with this fact worthy of nothing more than a "ho-hum" from our faculties of perception. On the contrary, things are bursting with being. "Is-ing" is a fascinating and powerful achievement - the achievement of really existing which should never be taken for granted, as something that does not provoke our minds to wonder (American philosopher Frederick Wilhelmsen was known for his vigorous presentation of this point in his famous "is-ing" lecture). 

We have allowed ourselves to be lulled into metaphysical sleep by the apparently commonplace character of the existence of things. We must realize, instead, that the existing of any thing is a spectacular and awe-inspiring event.

This realization, achieved by means of a sufficiently intense attention to the reality of things, will lead us to recognize that existing is an actualization that comes to an essence "from outside." It is at one and the same time the fundamental act that any thing "does," and an act that does not emerge from a thing's own essential power, and which therefore must be brought about in it by Something Else. When we say "John runs," we recognize that "running" is an activity distinct from "John," something that John does; John "actualized" in a certain respect, John moving from one place to another. However, this act takes place as a result of John's own inherent capacities: he causes himself to run by means of the muscular energy he possesses by virtue of the organic and "animal" characteristics that are proper features of his essence.

When we say "John exists," however, we are talking about the fundamental actualization of John, Could John be the cause of his own existence? It's impossible. In order to bring about an effect, a cause has to "be there," but John without the act of existing is not "there," and therefore he cannot bring about any effect at all, much less his own existence.

So how is it, then, that John exercises the act of existing? He must receive the impetus of this act from some outside source. At this point in the argument, St. Thomas invokes the principle that there cannot be an infinite series of caused causes, and thus concludes that there must be a First Cause that gives to all other things their act of existing. As First Cause, it is the Origin of all existence, which means that it does not receive its act of existing from anywhere else. It possesses "existing" properly, as the very definition of what it is. Its essence is "to exist; it is Sheer Existence, the subsistent, pure act of "to be." This Being, indeed, is the Being we call God.

To summarize the argument in simple terms: Our existence does not come from ourselves; it is given to us. This means that there must be a Giver of existence who is the Source of this gift, who therefore possesses it essentially and fully. We have existence because we receive it from the One who is Existence - Pure and Absolute Existence.

“Rejoicing in the Lord”

A presentation from the “digital scriptorium” — it’s odd, perhaps, but I have been fiddling with it at different points throughout the day, and now it’s time to say okay, enough! It’s a great verse, in any case…

Saint Paul: A Truly “Great” Conversion Story

Saint Paul’s conversion from persecutor to Apostle is the radical instance of what constitutes every Christian conversion. His experience is fundamentally an encounter with the person of Jesus Christ who communicates himself in and through his Church. It reveals at this very early moment in Christian history an essential feature of the mystery of the Church: Jesus identifies himself with those who follow him, and extends his visible and missionary presence in time and space through them.

Of course, we are familiar with the story. After presiding over the stoning of Saint Stephen, Saul obtains letters from the high priest so that he can arrest Christians in Damascus. He is “breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord” (Acts 9:1). Saul has met the followers of “the Way,” but there has been no real encounter; he doesn’t see that the God he longs for and seeks to please with a desperate zeal is communicating himself as a free gift in the midst of these people. “I had acted ignorantly in unbelief” (1 Timothy 1:13), he explains later.

Saint Paul is converted by the famous “light from heaven” on the road to Damascus, in which Jesus reveals himself in his own voice, and at the same time indicates that he is the object of Saul’s persecution: “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting” (Acts 9:5). It is Jesus himself who opens Paul’s eyes and enables him to see that Christians are not an errant Jewish sect but the very presence of God’s redeeming love in the world.

The light from the glory of Jesus blinds Saul, and it is fitting that a disciple from Damascus, Ananias, is sent to him after three days to restore his sight and baptize him. After this, Saul is completely changed. Immediately we hear in very simple terms that he is “with the disciples at Damascus” and “in the synagogues immediately he proclaimed Jesus, saying, ‘He is the Son of God’” (Acts 9:19-20).

For Saul, conversion comes from the completely gratuitous gift of God, from an encounter that is pure mercy: “the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 1:14). The grace of this encounter with Jesus corresponds to a recognition of who the followers of Jesus really are, and an insertion of himself into this reality, the Church, and into its mission of witness.

St. Paul’s miraculous conversion is one of the great events of the New Testament. Nevertheless, in it we can see the basic features that make up every conversion story. It was not just a change of convictions. Paul encountered a person, Jesus, who identified himself with persons that Paul knew or would come to know. He recognized Jesus in these persons, the disciples, and in his own transformed life (“it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” [Galatians 2:20]) as he also witnessed Jesus through the grace of faith and love.

Conversion is always a work of grace. It is always an encounter with Jesus in the communion of the Church. St. Paul’s story is reenacted, again and again, in less outwardly dramatic ways, in every place, in every time, to so many different kinds of people.

Saint Francis De Sales on "Love of Neighbor"

Saint Francis de Sales preaches beautifully about how and why we are called to love our neighbors (and - by extension - our true selves). He summons us to meditate on the tremendous intimacy of God's presence and God's love here and now, for each of us and all of us. Do we remember the gift of this Love that sustains our being and calls us every day, within all our responsibilities and all our various concerns and preoccupations?

When I ponder the words of the text below (in bold type), when I "pray these words" and others of this great 17th century Doctor of the Church, I am restored and renewed in my perspective on myself, those around me, the wider community, the responsibilities of our nation for the "common good" within and beyond our own boundaries, and the truth about all of us, about the whole world. The ultimate, definitive truth about the world - even this world today with all its divisions, covetousness, and violence - is that "God so loved the world that He gave His Only-begotten Son..." (John 3:16). We glimpse the fullness of reality in the measure in which we are given and shaped by the wisdom of "the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:39).

This means that in order to love others (with a love that grasps the existential foundation for the ineradicable dignity of every human person), we must 'see' each of them as they really are - each one personally and particularly loved by the Heart of Jesus, God the Son, the Word made flesh who dwells among us. We come to know the tenderness of God's redeeming, sustaining, and fulfilling presence when we encounter Jesus and experience, through faith, the immense personal love of His Heart for our own selves. As Francis de Sales emphasizes:

"Then we shall be all steeped, as it were, in sweetness and gentleness toward all our neighbors, for we shall look upon these souls as resting in our Savior’s Heart.

"Alas! They who regard their neighbor in any other way run the risk of not loving him with purity, constancy, and impartiality. But beholding him in that divine resting place, who would not love him, bear with him, and be patient with his imperfections?…

"Your neighbor is there, in the Heart of the Savior, there as so beloved and so lovable that the divine Lover dies of love for him!"

The Feast of Saint Agnes

Happy Saint Agnes Day!

Agnes of Rome (c. year 304) chose Jesus as her only love. She put Jesus first in everything, and neither the allurements nor the violence of the powers of this world could take Him away from her.

Saint Agnes speaks in this ancient antiphon from today's Roman liturgy, which expresses the 1700 year old memory of this singular young girl, consecrated virgin, bride of Christ, martyr: "What I longed for, I now see; what I hoped for, I now possess; in heaven I am espoused to him whom on earth I loved with all my heart."

Whither U.S. Politics? Wisdom and Love For the Human Person

I have lived long enough to see many changes in the political landscape of the United States of America. We have a new regime today, a “united front” of all sorts of people who have aspirations for power, along with others who move with the wind, and others with whom I agree regarding many of the social evils of our time but who (in my opinion) also have many blind spots. 

I too have blind spots. One of the reasons for dialogue is that we can enrich one another’s perspective regarding the common good and the ways we can serve the common good—which is the good of persons-in-communion. The work of politics engages and has an impact on human persons. It is an art, not a science. It’s guiding light is wisdom. Do the current artisans of USA politics possess wisdom or seek wisdom?

Perhaps the weight of events in the coming years will drive them to seek wisdom, to pray for wisdom. It is my prayer for our political leaders, for other world leaders, for the peoples of my country and the world, for myself. Most of us don’t hold political office. We elect representatives, which means we have a responsibility to hold them accountable to recognize and respect the dignity of every human person without exception. Political wisdom in today’s world will not emerge without a foundation in love for the person.

This is the particular challenge that today’s leaders must take up. Do they have any awareness of this responsibility or any capacity for it?

Now is not the time to shout “hurrah!” We must remain attentive, to hold these new leaders accountable for how they use their power. In particular, we cannot ignore the immense suffering that will come if they fulfill their plans for “mass deportations of millions of ‘illegal’ immigrants.” Dare we wash our hands of any concern for the poor and powerless of this hemisphere and inflict further sufferings on them? Is there no path to “documented permanent residency” (or some other equitable status) for those who have long lived and worked here and contributed to the wealth of this nation? Can we adequately secure our borders, protect ourselves from criminals and terrorists, and also have a generous and welcoming immigration policy?

Lord, convert our hearts to Your Wisdom, that we might adhere to Your Merciful Love and grow in love for our brothers and sisters, especially regarding the poor, the sick, the elderly, migrants and refugees, unborn children and their mothers, the homeless, the dispossessed, and all who bear heavy burdens. Lord have mercy on us all.

Prayer For the Unity of All Christians

“In these days of prayer for Christian unity, let us not cease to invoke from God the precious gift of full communion between all the Lord’s disciples” (Pope Francis).

[Image from Vatican Website]

Los Angeles Fires Rage On

Los Angeles, California is burning.

Two major wildfires have swept through 40,000 acres of residential areas in Los Angeles County, mostly north of the city boundaries. Over two dozen people have died, and more than 30 are missing. Dry conditions and high winds were responsible for the rapid spread of these fires to the Palisades and Eaton regions. 

The areas that are actually on fire may seem small in comparison to the enormous Los Angeles metropolitan area populated by 18 million residents.  Most of them are not (yet) at risk from these particular fires that burn relentlessly in ares like Palisades and Eaton, where there are homes for superstars and rich people, ordinary people, and many poor people as well. In these densely populated areas, people feel that they have seen the apocalypse. Firefighters have been struggling night and day to contain the blaze, and have finally begun to have some success in containing the fire. For thousands of private homes in the area, however, it is too late.

There is the long and laborious work ahead to prevail over the fire and reconstruct the areas affected. We have to join with these suffering people in prayer, compassion, and whatever material support we might be able to provide. May the Lord pour out His superabundant graces and mercy on all those who have suffered loss at this time. Lord, have mercy on those who are afflicted, who have lost homes that they cherish. Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for your children!

Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles, pray for us!

“The Face and the Voice of God”

Pope Francis baptized 21 children in the Sistine Chapel this morning (image from Vatican Media livestream) during the celebration of today’s Mass for the Solemnity of Jesus’s Baptism—His encounter with John the Baptist in the Jordan River, where the mystery of God as Trinity was “manifested”—thus bringing to a conclusion this “Season of Epiphanies” that began on Christmas Day. At noon, the Pope gave this brief reflection and exhortation at the Angelus:

“When Jesus receives baptism, the Spirit manifests Himself and the Epiphany of God occurs; He reveals His face in the Son and makes His voice heard, which says: ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased’ (v. 22). The face and the voice.

“First of all, the face. In revealing Himself to be the Father through the Son, God establishes a special space for entering into dialogue and communion with humanity. It is the face of the beloved Son.

“In second place, the voice. Face and voice. ‘You are my beloved Son’ (v. 22). This is another sign that accompanies the revelation of Jesus.

“Dear brothers and sisters, today’s feast makes us contemplate the face and the voice of God, which are manifested in Jesus’ humanity. And so, let us ask ourselves: do we feel loved? Do I feel loved and accompanied by God, or do I think that God is distant from me? Are we capable of recognizing His face in Jesus and in our brothers and sisters? And are we accustomed to listening to His voice?

“I will ask you a question: does every one of you remember the date of your Baptism? This is very important! Think: on what day was I baptized? And if we do not remember, when we arrive home, let us ask our parents or our godparents the date of our Baptism. And let us celebrate this date as if it were a new birthday: that of our birth in the Spirit of God. Do not forget! This is our homework: the date of our Baptism. Let us entrust ourselves to the Virgin Mary, invoking Her help. And do not forget the date of your Baptism!”

My own Baptism was on March 10, 1963. I don’t always remember or celebrate this day, but I shall during this Holy Year. I shall remember and celebrate it with gratitude as the beginning of my own journey in Christ toward the definitive embrace of the Triune God.

The Prayers of “Epiphany Week”

Above: a reflection from the late Pope Benedict XVI on the wonderful mystery we have celebrated in this season, and at the beginning of the Holy Year 2025.

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During this past week, I’ve been digitally “clipping” some of the beautiful and profound invocations, antiphons, and prayers of these days leading up to tomorrow’s great feast. Here are precious prayers encompassing the themes of the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word—the Only-Begotten Son of the Father—and the centrality of this event for our destiny, for the whole world, for all of creation.

“Remembering Christina Grimmie” in Digital Portraits

This date marks eight years and seven months since the tragic (and, in my opinion, heroic) death of Christina Grimmie. These four portraits are “works in progress,” I suppose. They have their origin in screenshots I took from Christina’s YouTube channel, but they have been imaginatively reconceived in many ways (using various tools of digital media).

Graphics media continue to explode with dizzying new possibilities (too many!). I have been working with crafting photographs into “digital art” since 2013. I don’t understand the technological manipulations that make this work possible (anymore than I understand the science behind photography). The introduction and increase of so-called “artificial intelligence” into graphics widens the scope of what can be done with existing images, but still in the manner of a blunt hammer that opens up paths to pursue but also creates new problems. I have little use for the currently trendy “word-to-image” gimmicks, which don’t work for my purposes except insofar as they facilitate some small corrections.

My experience remains that of an photographic artist, who works with new tools that expand the plasticity of photo images so that they can be “sculpted” in ways that correspond to the inspiration and “intuition” that guides what I’m trying to do. Digital tools offer powerful “preset physical alterations" than can contribute further material for this creative inspiration and suggest wider paths for the artist's work. But these same tools (so "easy" to apply) can often deflect the artist's attention away from the personal trajectory of his or her properly aesthetic inspiration, and “take over” the unfolding of the work—distracting the creative process and resulting in a sculpted image that is not only mediocre but also dissatisfying and frustrating to the artist.

The digital world is hyper-saturated with images, and with tools that promise to produce more images quickly and easily. Lots of this involves simple image-making for illustrative or functional purposes (and there's nothing wrong with that). Too many "creative images," however, are pretentious, strange, flippant, inconsiderately fantastic-for-its-own-sake, cheap and homogenized, ugly, or violent. I have made more than my share of cheap stuff. Nevertheless I'm betting that a new art form may be emerging from all this chaotic visual experimentation. In time it will find its own aesthetic measure. Perhaps this art form is a kind of extension of photography, which was struggling to find its own proper creative possibilities a century ago. Later on, cinema and television would develop and fight for recognition in analogous ways under the condescending and skeptical eyes of dramatic artists who used “traditional [stage] media.” Improvisational music also struggled—first as the misunderstood marvel of jazz, and then with the addition of electronic amplification and tonal manipulation, the “popular music” that is heard everywhere today, most of which is banal and forgettable, but which occasionally is borne up to astonishing heights of beauty (analogously) by extraordinary, gifted, and hard-working musical artists.

Christina Grimmie was one of those artists (and many other things too, which I have discussed at considerable length on this blog over the past eight years).

Critics raise legitimate and important points, but they must be not simply dismissive but also attentive. The realm of beauty is as extensive and analogous as the realm of being itself. Artistic creativity is a human activity, which requires more than just the happy accidents of algorithmic associations. It requires a person who uses these resources to craft an object that “incarnates” a real creative intuition of the luminosity of being (and digital bytes are material, for all their complexity, so they can ultimately be crafted into a material thing under the vision and intention of the artist).

I may never rise above the level of mediocrity, but I am trying. I have spent many hours, much laborious attention, and a decisive amount of “hands-on” work on my digital landscapes (from my own photographs) and—more recently—on portraiture that concentrates on a handful of frequently photographed and interesting faces of celebrities that I have some sort of connection with (because portraiture that arises from insight into the beauty of a person has a higher and more sustaining “aim” for the artist). 

Sometimes, a portrait veers off the features of the original model and becomes a “different face” and I think that can be very interesting too. But I begin with a few familiar faces. I have worked on Lionel Messi’s odd-shaped, funny, generous face. He remains my favorite soccer player, and my second-favorite famous Argentinian person. (Ha, ha!) I was so glad that Messi finally won the World Cup. He has proven that great personal athletic talent and ardent teamwork are two sides of the same coin. He is intense and spontaneous, and also has huge ears that add “color” to his expressions of determination and joy. Then, of course, there’s the inimitable Avril Lavigne, with twenty three years of faces from ages 17-40 — Avril’s millennium generational “iconic” face, an exquisite face full of a multitude of often hilarious expressions, volumes of hair in various colors, and always the “overdone” black eyeliner. Efforts to do portraits of her are quite challenging (and rarely successful), but as I’ve expressed elsewhere on this blog, I have reason to care about her—her Lyme disease odyssey, her big (albeit wild) heart, and the touch of greatness in that magnificent first album and in some of her subsequent work. Avril can be crazy but she’s also shown lots of resilience in facing illness and other difficulties. I appreciate her and I pray for her. I also work on Ed Sheeran, who has the big, open, endearingly “ugly” face of an English pub bloke, topped off with various funky hairstyles. Nothing about his face suggests that he has been at or near the top of the charts for over a decade. He is super-talented, of course. I’m not particularly a fan of his music, but I know that—with all the fame—he’s had a hard road, and he’s very open about his struggles to develop his musical craft. I pray for him too. Another face is that of Norwegian singer-songwriter Sigrid Raabe (“Sigrid”), who makes great Scandipop music, has lots of informal pics and videos on her social media, usually wears very little makeup, and has a classic cheerful Norwegian face with fair skin and a big smile with an endearingly distinctive slightly-crooked front tooth. She’s has a natural bearing and seems like a lovely, unpretentious yet confident person. And, like most Scandinavian pop artists, Sigrid is classically trained on the piano and has serious musicals chops that undergird her well-crafted electronic pop songs.

There are some others "models" too, as well as a few “original” faces that I have developed over the years, and—of course—my own goofy mug as the subject of the most outrageous experiments in self-portraiture and caricature. Anyway, you get the idea. My portrait efforts focus on human heads and faces, which are inexhaustibly fascinating if one pays attention to them. Usually they include shoulders and some of the upper body simply attired with something like a tee shirt, so that the emphasis remains on faces and facial expressions, ears and hair. I have literally thousands of "drafts" that I keep in my "digital notebooks," some of which I revisit from time to time. They represent my efforts to work up visual ideas within a wildly expanding medium. They are the fruit of experiments and repetitions that may eventually lead to something I regard as finished, but more often are practical exercises engaged in for learning purposes. Very occasionally, I share on this blog a portrait I consider to be "finished," if particular circumstances warrant it. But I post my "best effort" portraits of Christina more frequently as part of my endeavor to remember her unique history and ongoing legacy every month (I think Christina would encourage me to risk a limited viewing of the artistic process that she has inspired me to take up, especially with respect to her own face that is no longer seen alive in this world). 

I realize the delicacy and particular responsibility this work entails (notwithstanding the fact that faces seem to mean nothing the more they are ubiquitously represented in the multimedia world). These faces I work with are the faces of persons, and their inner qualities—the more-than-meets-the-eye facets of personality revealed in their faces—stir up my vision and motivation to “present them” afresh, even if it's only a kind of "practice" for myself in this new emerging craft.

I’ve already written so much about why the late great Christina Grimmie is my chief inspiration and “muse” in this artistic adventure. She had a strength and beauty of soul, a light that shined from the inside outwards to generate a welcoming environment for others. In her art and in her life, she was courageous, willing to take risks not recklessly but boldly in the service of love. She shed light on the path of how to live in the world of today, how to surrender one’s self to the will of Christ in everything—including her presence in the Hollywood celebrity world—and how to die ...with arms wide open, in utter vulnerability, welcoming a stranger at an open meet-and-greet (because Christina wanted to meet everyone).

I have much to learn from her example. Meanwhile, I’m not afraid to risk pushing forward a little in the uncharted territory of digital art. That’s what she would want me to do. I may never get it “right,” but I will struggle to do my best.

“Impressions of Snow” (January 2025)

From the “Virtual Art Gallery” of JJStudios, we present these visual meditations on the recent (relatively mild) snow as experienced by JJ in his part of the Shenandoah Valley. People north and south of us, or at higher altitudes, may have had a more dramatic and voluminous snow experience in these early days of January 2025.

The first image is entitled “Waiting for Snow,” while the others form a series of “Impressions of Snow” (1, 2, and 3). They have been posted elsewhere, but here we can gather them in one place:

He Loved Us and Sent His Son

"Let us love one another, because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love. In this way the love of God was revealed to us: God sent his only-begotten Son into the world so that we might have life through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins" (1 John 4:7-10).

Happy Epiphany, and Happy Epiphany WEEK!

Happy Epiphany WEEK! Beautiful prayers as the liturgical Christmas Season continues until next Sunday. God the Word “appeared among us as the splendor of truth” by sharing “the frailty of our flesh.”⭐️ 

Another “New Year” For Me

Since I was a little boy, I have noticed that the celebration of the beginning of each new year has also involved celebrating the beginning of a “new year” in my own life. January 2 is JJ’s own “New Years Day,” and there have been quite a few of these. I have just marked the 23rd anniversary of my 39th birthday!

Ha ha ha…😜

62 years is a good stretch of time. It puts many things into perspective, but I'm not going to philosophize about them today. The most important thing I can say is that I thank God for everything.

We had a lovely day with family and friends. I got a very much needed haircut and beard trim from my favorite barber: my wife. I went for a walk in the cold clear air with Maria and Anna. We will have a bit more of a party over the weekend.

I’ll just post a collection of pictures, some old and some new, that cover various points of time and memory over these 6+ decades.

Anna looks like she’s ready to walk in space!☺️

Maria bundles up in her favorite pink coat.

Sisters! (Granddaughters!)

Here are the current “Elders” of the Virginia Janaro Clan.

Me and Eileen, a.k.a. “Dad and Mom,” “Papa and Nana”… (recent pic)

Eileen and I as Bride and Groom, nearly 29 years ago. Just two crazy kids!

Take it back 20 years ago: Spring 2005.

Janaro family, Fall 2005. Struggling with my health back then.

Me with Cardinal Arinze at a conference at my university (2004, I was Dept. Chair).

2006 brought me (what turned out to be temporary) remission, and Premie Josefina.
Above is me with Irish Dancing Josefina, around 2021 or 2022ish. 

Vigorous and healthy me with John Paul and Agnese, Fall 1999.

Me performing on guitar, 1980s (yes, that’s REALLY me!)

Approaching Manhattan on the Ferry, 1983 (when I had HAIR!😜)

JJ as irresponsible teenager (late 70s - early 80s)

Young rockstar-wannabe JJ “shredding” a solo (I was pretty good, actually).

Me with my Dad at a baseball game, 1977-ish.

The Janaro family on Christmas. (Mid 1970s?)

Back to 1964: My Dad and Mom with a one-year-old me.