What kind of
guitar do you play?
L'arrivée
acoustic, and a classical: La Patrie, Étude. I also have
a parlor L'arrivée and a Taylor for rehearsal and studio
work.
Did you attend
college or university?
I took three years
of mechanical engineering a.k.a. "hell", and then switched
into T.V., graduating from the Northern Alberta Institute of
Technology with a diploma in Radio and Television Arts.
How can a guy
as young as you have seven children?
Become a practicing
Catholic! I love them to bits, and feel so privileged that God
has seen fit to entrust these precious little eternal souls to
us!
What is your
favorite hobby?
Barbequing. Songwriting.
Staring at sunsets. Of course, now I'm blind.... color blind,
that is.
Who is your favorite
author?
Catherine de Hueck
Doherty, Michael D. O'Brien, Fr. Thomas Dubay, St. Francis de
Sales
What is your
favorite book?
"Practice the
Presence of God" by Brother Lawrence, or "Imitation
of Christ" by Thomas Kémpis. I highly recommend "Poustinia"
by Catherine Doherty or "The Gospel Without Compromise."
As far as novels, my favorite is Fr. Elijah by Michael
D. O'Brien.
Which are your
favorite movies?
Hmmm...
"The Passion
of Christ" bar none... also "Dead Poet's Society",
"Alive", "The Little Princess", "Iron
Will", "The Truman Show" & "Braveheart"
(I'll watch a re-run of Indiana Jones any day though.) and of
course, "The Sound of Music." I also love "The
Pianist" and "Schindler's List"... why do I think
those days are not over?
What are your
top 10 movie recommendations?
"The Passion
of Christ" will change you if you let it.
"Iron Will"
is an incredible family movie.
"Seabiscuit"
is not for children, but is exhilarating.
"The Pianist"
gets better with every viewing. Realistic violence not for kids.
"The Truman
Show" is brilliant.
"The Count of
Monte Criste" is fun adventure (Jim Caviezel)
"Frequency"
is a beautfiul, intense thriller. (Jim Caviezel)
"The Princess
Bride" is classic, clean, and funny.
"Labrynth"
is a very cool kid's movie that adults will also love.
"Jesus of Nazareth"
is a long, older version of Christ's life. But it has a penetrating
grace about it.
Why not eleven? "Braveheart"
is not for children but rouses the spirits.... freedom!
What are your
favorite shows?
The Vinyl Café
and Madly Off In All Directions (CBC Radio). Any Saskatchewan
Roughrider football game. To be honest, we don't have cable or
even rabbit ears in our home--there's too much garbage on TV!
What's your favorite
kind of music?
Mellow stuff.
Who is your favorite
saint?
Padre Pio. He is
my second spiritual director. I also feel that Faustina and Thérèse
are nearby. I also love Avila's honesty. My Baba and mother aren't
canonized yet, but they're right up there. Blessed Mother Theresa's
words are also a beacon for my soul. Some day, JPII will be in
this list.
What is your
favorite food?
I love good Thai
food or barbequed chicken; my dad makes incredible barbequed
chicken. Did I mention BBQ chicken?
Who is your favorite
recording artist today?
Would have to be
Jim Witter, Steve Wariner, Billy Dean, Bruce Springsteen, and
John Michael Talbot. Females would be Alison Krauss and Wynonna
Judd. As for Canadian artists, I really enjoy Mark Masri, Jon
Buller, Steve Bell, and Brian Doerksen. How's that for brevity.
Who has influenced
your life most?
My mom. She used
to call me in the middle of the day with tidbits of wisdom that
cut through the chaos of life. But I also know I am a lot like
my dad, and I'm glad for that.
What do you like
to do when you have nothing to do?
Nice question. Light
the fireplace and talk to my wife. And rent a good movie... which
is harder than it seems.
How do you pray?
Sometimes I just
chat with God... usually, I start my morning with daily Mass,
then the Liturgy of the Hours. Other times, I go for a walk and
pout. God can take it. After supper, our family prays together,
including a decade of the Rosary. At night I say, "Goodnight
Lord. I love you." And read until I'm bagged.
What is your
greatest fear?
Having to see myself
as I am now... in eternity.
Who is your favorite
professional sports team?
The Saskatchewan
Roughriders (cut me open--my blood's green). In hockey, it's
the underdog (though I was a big Oilers fan until they cut Gretzky
and my naive world was shattered. "You mean it's all about
money mom??") If Saskatchewan had a hockey team, they'd
be my favorite.
What is your
favorite place on earth?
Before any Eucharistic
tabernacle. I also love to stop at Hardy Falls in the Okanagan
Valley to pray, write, or risk my life climbing the side of the
falls in my Sunday clothes. Hope my wife doesn't read this.
What is your
take on the "signs of the times"?
You have to be in
denial if you cannot see that the world is unraveling on a weekly
basis. I believe we are in a time of great mercy. That
God is reaching out to us sinners with extraordinary love and
patience. But I don't believe the world can sustain its spirit
of decadence and disdain for human life much longer. I believe
we will see an unprecedented intervention from God very soon.
Already, the Church is being purified, the goats from the sheep.
This is clear, as what appears to be a great apostasy is rapidly
unfolding. Those who are lukewarm and compromising the truth,
are being sucked into moral relativism and a self-made religion
called "Tolerance" (which is another word for "compromise").
But those who are humbling themselves, and seeking the truth,
are finding it. They are small in number, but are being intensely
purified. Insignifianct now, they will be beacons of light when
the sun finally goes down.
While we do not know
if we are near the end, it certainly seems that we are living
in a shadow of those times predicted by Jesus.
What's your philosophy
about music?
I love all kinds
of music, secular and Christian. I don't think it's healthy to
turn off the radio simply because someone's not "Christian"
or the station is secular. Isn't it God who's given the gift
of music to a secular artist?
If you listen closely,
you will hear God singing all over the place. He sings about
love, about life, about pain, about joy, about the things He
created us to experience and that He Himself experienced in the
person of Jesus Christ.
This might scandalize
some people, but I think James Horner's song "My Heart Will
Go On" from Titanic (sung by Céline Dion) is one
of the most "anointed" songs of the decade. Why? Because
it sings about everything you and I can identify with: pain,
grief, love, loss, faithfulness, fortitude. Aren't these the
things Christ personified all at once on the cross? Besides,
the melody is beautiful.
Secular music often
sings about reality, and reality is a form of truth, and Jesus
IS the Truth. So no wonder people are moved to tears by a love
song on the radio, because it is God in disguise, speaking to
their hearts, stirring their hunger for Him. It is really God
singing: "It is my plan for you to be loved by Me and by
others, to be happy, to be at peace... and to return that love
to them and to Me." When secular music crosses the line
is when it glorifies lust and sex, hatred and crime, envy, greed
and deception. Then music loses it's ability to build up the
heart. Then it's not even worth the plastic shrinkwrap it came
in.
A few years back,
Pope John Paul II shared the stage with Bob Dylan, and even quoted
one of his songs. I think the Pope's openness made a marvelous
statement about how we should view the world around us. We are
all made in the image of God. When anyone reflects this image
in what they do or say -- Hindu, Muslim, atheist, Jew, Christian,
country or rock star -- we should never be afraid to look at
them, because God may be looking back.
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