Written By Fr. Dennis Gallagher, A.A.

A book in hand

Undoubtedly, there are advantages to reading from a tablet or an iPad. Cost, convenience while traveling, storage capacity, font flexibility all favor the electronic device over the traditional book, to say nothing of environmental concerns and the elimination of all that paper. Clearly, electronic is the reasonable way to go.

But sometimes rationality is not all that it’s cracked up to be. Or, better, a rationality reduced to considerations of cost and convenience. Consider all the pleasures of the book, starting with the tactile ones: holding the book in hand, turning the pages, even tearing open the Amazon-delivered box. Then there’s the underlining, the highlighting and notes in the margins. Yes, those last three can be done on the tablet, but not with my peculiar script and idiosyncratic notations. Altogether, there is a presence to a book that makes it an extension of myself. I used to say when I was teaching a course that it felt like a companion for the duration of the semester. A book in hand can feel something the same.

By Fr. Peter Precourt, A.A.

I have now been here for two weeks and have begun to find my way around El Paso. Thank goodness for the app Waze which guides me through the maze of roads here in Southern Texas. This is no small city. It is very spread out. I would say that 95% of the buildings are only one story high and that includes most of the commercial property. The tall buildings are found in the city center and college campuses. The current population is estimated at around 682,669. The diocese of El Paso is estimated at 80% of the population. When it comes to weather, I would say “Toto this is not New England”. This a desert climate that is cool at night and warm during the day. The humidity is generally around 12%. The trees (which are few) have been planted and are watered daily by irrigation. It is quite dusty when the wind blows because there is not much vegetation to keep the soil down.