"Discern with and visit different orders or communities to get a personal sense of their charism and life together."
BR. BONAVENTURE
PAUL- BONHAM, OP
TAKE A MOMENT TO
MEET BR. BONAVENTURE!
What's your favorite thing you've read during your studies?
Favorite fiction read during novitiate (in rough order of enjoyment):
1. The Betrothed (1827) by Alessandro Manzoni (Michael F. Moore translation)
2. Kristin Lavransdatter (1922) by Sigrid Undset, TOSD (Tiina Nunnally translation)
3. The Ball and the Cross (1909) by G.K. Chesterton
4. Musashi (1935) by Eiji Yoshikawa (Charles S. Terry translation)
5. Father Elijah (1996) by Michael D. O’Brien
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Favorite non-fiction read during novitiate (in rough order of enjoyment):
1. On the Incarnation (c. 330 AD) by St. Athanasius of Alexandria (John Behr translation)
2. The City of God (426) by St. Augustine of Hippo (Henry Bettenson translation)
3. Heretics (1905), Orthodoxy (1908), & The Everlasting Man (1925) by G.K. Chesterton
4. The Fulfillment of All Desire: A Guidebook for the Journey to God Based on the Wisdom of the Saints (2006) by Ralph Martin
5. The Genesis of Gender: A Christian Theory (2022) by Abigail Favale
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Favorite poetry read during novitiate (in rough order of enjoyment):
1. The Divine Comedy (1320) by Dante Alighieri (Anthony Esolen translation)
2. George Herbert
3. Gerard Manley Hopkins SJ (There’s a really good annotated edition of his poetry by Holly Ordway)
4. John Donne
5. Thomas Traherne
If you could join any past or current music group, which would you pick?
There’s a bit I like from comedian Nish Kumar where he opines on his desire to be the drummer from Coldplay because the drummer from Coldplay is (1) super rich, (2) gets to travel the world making music enjoyed by many people, (3) gets to sit down during their performances, and (4) enjoys a level of anonymity that is a borderline superpower. For the same reasons, I would like to be the drummer from U2 solely because I like their music better.
Perhaps more seriously, because it is my favorite piece of music, I would like to play with the first group to play Bach’s St. Matthew Passions (1727).
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In case you were wondering, the drummer for Coldplay is Will Champion and the drummer for U2 is Larry Mullen Jr. I can give you that information only because I Googled it.
TIPS FROM
BR. BONAVENTURE:
What's a tip you have for young men discerning priesthood/religious life?
Discern with and visit different orders or communities to get a personal sense of their charism and life together.
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Discern with the help of a good Catholic spiritual director, maybe even one who is a member of a religious order/community.