Category Archives: Father Dan Begin

Moving Mountains

Posted on June 19, 2017 by Kathy

Because Father Dan wasn’t the formal celebrant on St. Cecilia’s last day, he couldn’t deliver the homily. That’s a rule. According to canon law, the Bishop says the last Mass and gives the homily. Father Dan was leaving his neighborhood, his … Continue reading →

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If Nothing Ever Changed . . .

Posted on June 12, 2017 by Kathy

Google proved a goldmine of information for Father Dan’s homilies. On Epiphany, he would explain the Star of Bethlehem this way: the astronomical conjunction of planets in about 6 BCE lined up in Pisces, a constellation special to the Hebrews, sparking … Continue reading →

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A Funeral

Posted on May 11, 2017 by Kathy

I posted this essay about seven years ago, when the Diocese of Cleveland was in the process of closing St. Cecilia and Epiphany churches in the Mount Pleasant neighborhood. I don’t know why I didn’t name Father Dan Begin back … Continue reading →

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Love the One You’re With

Posted on April 22, 2017 by Kathy

Whenever I asked Father Dan for advice, I’d feel some sympathy for Jesus’s disciples, because I usually had no idea what he was talking about until much later. Once, many years ago, I sought his advice about my high-school-aged daughter, … Continue reading →

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Welcoming the Stranger

Posted on April 9, 2017 by Kathy

One of the most noteworthy things about Father Dan Begin was that his words and his actions were almost perfectly in sync. This quality made his sermons especially powerful; if you knew him, you could hear his advice and immediately … Continue reading →

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Father Dan on Grieving

Posted on March 6, 2017 by Kathy

Father Dan delivered this homily on Palm Sunday, March 23, 2009, the week after Bishop Richard Lennon announced the closing of his churches, St. Cecilia and Epiphany.   I think as we watch Jesus struggle, it affirms in us that … Continue reading →

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Exuberance Is Beauty

Posted on March 1, 2017 by Kathy

Father Dan Begin and I never talked about William Blake, the English Romantic poet, which may sound pretentious, but we were two old English majors who enjoyed hauling out our tattered copies of the Norton Anthology of English Literature on … Continue reading →

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How to Be Happy, Redux

Posted on February 23, 2017 by Kathy

4000 readers and counting have read Monday’s post about Father Dan. As I posted on Facebook, I can now conclude that people find Father Dan more interesting than borderline personality. Just to provide perspective: I might get around 50 hits on … Continue reading →

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Father Dan Once Again

Posted on February 20, 2017 by Kathy

Saturday morning my friend and pastor Dan Begin died at the home of his sister Donna. This is very hard for everyone who knew him, but he chose—and I emphasize chose—to ease the way for us all by his attitude … Continue reading →

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The Wiz

Posted on February 13, 2017 by Kathy

I’ve written a fair number of words about my friend Father Dan Begin and have decided for various reasons to begin sharing them now and then. This one was mostly written a few years back, when this adventure occurred.     … Continue reading →

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