The Musical Priest

Teachers know well “the apple does not fall far from the tree.” The annual parent-teacher conference attests and affirms its wisdom: teachers can generally detect in parents both the praiseworthy and cringe-inducing traits found in students. As an educator, I have followed the way “toxic masculinity” has come to describe elements of our wider culture and to all-male student environments. The idea, as I understand it, is that our culture and school sub-cultures provide males a “script” of masculinity. To perform the male role, a “man” must truncate his emotions, act aggressively, have no qualms objectifying woman, and meet with skepticism if not hostility opinions questioning these “manly” traits. I’ve caught glimmers of this. While monitoring the student section at sporting events, we had to be vigilant lest the contagion of an ignorant or offensive chant – often culled from YouTube or movies – infect the section and lead to scandal. Bullying or hazing be...

I wrote this for the 2018 North American Irish Dancing Championships, but I reckon it applies to any Irish dancer! An Irish Dancer’s Blessing O Lord, Our God, we give you thanks for the talents you have bestowed and we ask that you be with our dancers these days. We ask, of course, for the obvious:                 may they remember their steps and             stay on time with the music;             may their team lines be straight,             and keep all dancers on the correct foot.             Bless the musicians with skill             and the adjudicators with wisdom. But bless them, Lord, wit...