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Ave Maria, Florida – the town with a Catholic heart.©™ Stories & information for residents & visitors.Archive for Ave Maria Florida
New home sales in Ave Maria: Hampton highest average price, Maple Ridge most sales
Map from county website showing Ave Maria home sales in 2014
In the four-month period April 1 through July 28, 2014, there were 51 new home sales in Ave Maria at an average price of just over $277,000 (according to a database search of the official records of Collier County). Meanwhile new construction continues apace in Maple Ridge
While Hampton Village had the highest average new home price, Maple Ridge sold the most homes, followed closely by Del Webb. Also noteworthy is that Ave Maria Development has no more condominiums listed for sale at La Piazza in the heart of town. These figures include only new home sales from the various builders to the public:
- 23 Maple Ridge new home closings at an average sales price of about $284,000;
- 22 Del Webb Naples new home closings at an average sales price just under $276,000;
- 3 Hampton Village new home closings at an average sales price of about $298,000;
- 2 LaPiazza condo new home closings at an average sales price of $170,000; and
- 1 Emerson Park new home closing at a sales price of $290,000.
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Comments, Chronology & Video: Ave Maria University President Towey reacts to Hobby Lobby decision
Today’s Supreme Court news in the Hobby Lobby HHS contraception mandate case reverberated in Ave Maria rather loudly. While the impact the decision will have on lawsuits by non-profits such as AMU is not clear, AMU president Jim Towey (an attorney) sees today’s decision as a good development. AMU is represented by the Becket Fund, the same law firm that prevailed in today’s Hobby Lobby case. The Ave Herald’s coverage is here.
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Ave Snapshots: Classics does Rome, and a somewhat Chaucerian pilgrimage in Padua
Summer can be a nice time for some armchair traveling. Vicarious journeys are a lot less stressful and expensive – and so easy to enjoy now that seemingly everyone lifeblogs in some way (even Classics people).
Someone with close ties to Ave Maria is having a nice time in Italy “on a somewhat Chaucerian pilgrimage” in Padua.
While elsewhere Classics students at Ave Maria University enjoy the privilege of a curated journey through Rome.
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Our neighbor Novak’s deft reply to New York Times’ attempt to pit Pope Francis against Pope Saint John Paul II
Queerly, the New York Times seems to be advocating that papal pronouncements ought to influence culture and public policy, and in that vein has posed this question and then published five responses:
Jesus drove money changers out of the Temple, calling them “a den of thieves.” Of the profit-centric world view, Pope Francis warned, “We can no longer trust in the unseen forces and the invisible hand of the market,” to provide economic justice. Others call Christianity and capitalism inextricable. Is contemporary capitalism compatible with Christian values?
Novak presents shirt reading “Centisimus Annus” to Pope Saint John Paul II – click to see it and other photos at Novak’s website
Interestingly, that setup by the Times ignores how Pope Saint John Paul II described capitalism in the magisterial encyclical Centisumus Annus:
… an economic system which recognizes the fundamental and positive role of business, the market, private property and the resulting responsibility for the means of production, as well as free human creativity in the economic sector … circumscribed within a strong juridical framework which places it at the service of human freedom in its totality.
But Michael Novak did not let the Times get away with that omission (or the Times’ lame attempt to pit Pope Francis against his canonized predecessor John Paul); Novak’s is one of the five published responses, and it begins with the saint’s definition and discusses why capitalism is the most moral of the economic systems. It is worth reading.
Back from Calcutta, President Towey says heart of AMU education is “learning about your faith and putting your faith in action”
Mother Teresa continues to influence the Ave Maria University campus. In this video, AMU students discuss their experience travelling to Calcutta on a recent trip with with AMU president Jim Towey.
According to Towey, “at the heart of what Ave Maria’s education experience is all about is learning about your faith and putting your faith in action.”
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Newspaper does good job covering call to priesthood – Ave Maria featured
News-Press image – click for full version
While it can seem rare,* the press sometimes does a good job covering religion and the religious experience. The Fort Myers News-Press has published a nice multimedia piece (article, video, photos) that features Ave Maria pastor Father Cory Mayer (who is also the vocation director for the Diocese of Venice), Ave Maria University director of campus ministry Father Robert Garrity, and a recent graduate of AMU. The piece highlights two men discerning a call to ordination as priests, including a surprise ending. Hats off to reporter Dave Breitenstein who can be reached at dbreitenstein@news-press.com.
The piece is part of a three part series about Catholic priests in the Diocese of Venice. Excerpts from each one are below:
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McTeigue: on lust, nursing babies, serving 2 masters, and St. Aloysius Gonzaga’s example of purity
St. Aloysius Gonzaga’s example of caring for plague victims resulted in his being adopted as the patron of those who have AIDS and their caregivers
Ave Maria’s Father Robert McTeigue, S.J., preached this homily on the feast of St. Aloysius Gonzaga. He is currently finishing a collection of homilies and essays on preaching entitled, I Have Someone to Tell You: A Jesuit Heralds the Gospel.
Why should we care about Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, who was a young Jesuit saint who died at the age of 22 in 1591? Well, he’s long been known as a “patron of youth”, which is a fine thing, because your youth today need plenty of patrons, but I suspect some people may find Saint Aloysius difficult to market to today’s youth. After all, he doesn’t have a cool street name like others admired by young folks today, such as “Jay Z” or “Righteous B.” We don’t have photos of him looking like an Italian fashion model, as we do of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati. And to make Saint Aloysius a reall hard sell in today’s world, he’s known as a patron of youthful purity.
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McTeigue: Jesus tells us, “Do not make an idol or an instrument of people made beautiful by God.”
Ave Maria’s Father Robert McTeigue, S.J., preached this homily today for the Feast of St. Anthony of Padua. The scripture readings are here. Please pray for Father as he works towards completing a collection of homilies and essays on preaching entitled, I Have Someone to Tell You: A Jesuit Heralds the Gospel.
Michelangelo’s naked Adam and Eve just before the Fall, on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. According to Ave Maria University’s Dr. Michael Waldstein, a renowned scholar on Pope St. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body: “Some [naked] images push us to concupiscence, others do not. . . . Going to the Sistine Chapel and looking at the naked women on the ceiling is for this reason a very different experience than watching a pornographic movie. It is not presumption, but the experience of many men, that one can look with purity at Michelangelo’s nudes and take delight in their beauty. Michelangelo himself must have looked at his naked models in a pure way in order to be able to paint nudes in that pure way. . . . Of course, if one does feel a slide into concupiscence when looking at Michelangelo’s nudes, it is a good idea to look away. That need to look away should also be a trumpet blast for recognizing . . . that one is in need of a serious transformation.”
May I ask you a question? What if someone came to you and said this: “Oh! I just did a terrible thing! I was in an art museum, and I noticed that the paintings were beautiful!” You would think that a rather strange statement, would you not? Suppose your troubled friend went on to say: “And after I noticed that the paintings were beautiful, I praised the artists who painted them!” You would know right away that your friend is obviously quite confused. Going to an art museum, enjoying the beauty of the paintings, and then praising the painters—well, in terms of a purpose of a museum—it just doesn’t get any better than that.
But what if your friend says this: “Oh! I went to the art museum, and I saw the beautiful paintings, and I stole them!” Then you would know that your poor friend is more than just confused. And what if your friend said: “I went to the art museum, slashed the beautiful paintings, and used the shredded paintings to shine my shoes.” Then you would know for sure that your confused friend is very sick.
Now, let me ask you another question. What does this little parable of mine have to do with today’s gospel reading?
Ave Maria new home closings recorded April 1 through June 12, 2014
A snapshot from Trulia. Figures below are from the Collier County Clerk’s online records.
There are reportedly over 100 homes currently under construction in Ave Maria. According to a database search of the official records of Collier County covering the 73-day period April 1 through June 12, in Ave Maria there were:
- 31 new home closings in all of Ave Maria at an average sales price of about $278,000;
- 10 Maple Ridge new home closings at an average sales price of about $271,000;
- 18 Del Webb Naples new home closings at an average sales price just under $287,000;
- 1 Emerson Park new home closing at a sales price of $290,000;
- 1 Hampton Village new home closing at a sales price of about$284,000;
- 1 LaPiazza condo new home closing at a sales price of $175,000.
These figures include only new home sales from the various builders to the public.
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2 new FOCUS missionaries assigned to AMU
Welcome to Ave Maria’s two newest residents. May their work bear much fruit.
Drum roll please……………..looks like I’ll need to get used to this humidity and start buying bug spray in bulk because as the first week of New Staff Training came to a close, I found out that I will be serving as a FOCUS Missionary right here at Ave Maria University in South Florida!! I’ll talk more on placements later but first I wanna touch on everything that’s happened this past week. It’s only been 5 full days here at training and already I feel like we’ve done and covered so much information. It was a little overwhelming at first but we’re all having lots of fun and I’m really looking forward to the next 4 weeks.
5 of The 7 Of Us Here From Colorado State (From Left To Right: Me, Ashlyn, Sean, Brian and Matt)
First of all, I have to say again just how amazing it is to…
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POLL: In what Catholic groups or movements are you involved here in Ave Maria?
Please take the poll, which closes after one week. You can add groups if yours isn’t listed. If you would like a group or movement to start meeting in Ave Maria, please list that in the comments.
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8 things to click: a click-worthy Ave Maria update
It’s May June. We’re all so busy. Here is a quick and dirty mash-up of things of note for Ave Marians (and those who love us):
1. For the past few years, Sister Albert Marie, OP, DSMME, has been a graduate Theology student at AMU. On Friday she will present her doctoral thesis. All are invited. Click the flyer for details.
2. On Friday the Donahue Catholic Shamrock 8-man football team played a spring game. This was the first game since losing in the Florida state title game, and the first game playing without 12 seniors who were on that team. The boys won 20 to 14.
3. Our former neighbor and friend, the always compelling Joseph Pearce, gave a lecture in the UK on the delicious things about which he always writes and talks. AMU Classics and Philosophy professor Joseph Yarbrough was kind enough to draw my attention to the podcast of it. Pearce talks about the Second Spring, a reference to the Traditional Latin Mass, which he explains through a chain of references to Coleridge, Newman, Hopkins, Wilde, Chesterton, Belloc, Greene, Waugh, Lewis and Tolkein (are you hungry yet?).
4. The joy of having the Dominican Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist here in town is temporarily tempered by the farewells that inevitably come each June when the Sisters depart for summer assignments. For some, the departure also marks the end of their assignment in Ave Maria, as it does this year for Sister Teresa Benedicta and Sister Mary Martha, who have been teaching at Donahue Catholic. Sister Teresa Benedicta has been teaching high school theology for the past five years, and next year she will be at a high school in San Francisco. Sister Mary Martha has been teaching in the grammar school for just one year, and next year she will be teaching in Peoria. Make sure you say goodbye and wish them well in their new assignments.
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Ave Maria Oratory – Mass and Confession times June 2014
Our town is fortunate to have an abundance of opportunity for Confession and Mass, as well as an abundance of priests who live and work in town. Summer is when the schedule changes a bit because so many people (including priests) are away during the summer break. While 500+ additional Catholics are in Ave Maria for FOCUS new staff training, this is the June Mass schedule for the Oratory:
If that version seems fuzzy, you can find a PDF version here. Here are links for the summer schedule after FOCUS leaves – it might not be accurate, but it will likely look like this in July and August:
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Fr. McTeigue: Invite God’s Providence & Accept His Paternal Authority
Ave Maria’s Father Robert McTeigue, S.J., preached this homily for the 5th Sunday after Easter according to the calendar of the Traditional Latin Mass. The Epistle was James 1:22-27, and the Gospel was John 16:23-30. Please pray for Father as he works towards completing a collection of homilies and essays on preaching entitled, I Have Someone to Tell You: A Jesuit Heralds the Gospel.
Did you ever wonder—what would the world look like if there were no fathers? Now, if you are biologically minded you might object and say, “‘No fathers’ = ‘no babies’” so a world without fathers would not last very long. True enough. But I am not talking about being a simple donor of genetic material; I am talking about being a true father. What would a world without true fathers look like?
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Ave Maria new home closings recorded in April and May 2014
There are reportedly about 100 homes currently under construction in Ave Maria. According to a database search of the official records of Collier County for the period April 1 through May 24, in Ave Maria there were apparently:
- 7 Maple Ridge new home closings at an average sales price of slightly above $262,000;
- 6 Del Webb Naples new home closings at an average sales price just under $260,000;
- 1 Emerson Park new home closing (Lot 168) at a sales price of $290,000; and
- No Hampton Village new home closings recorded during that period.
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Smalltown USA: Little League Champs, Knights of Columbus, Memorial Day Picnic at the Water Park
Knights of Columbus poster from WW I
UPDATE: Here are some photos and a report about the party.
While Ave Maria has an obvious Catholic flavor, it’s really a rebirth of small town USA. This post honors several American traditions.
Ave Maria’s 
first rate little league fields in North Park now have a first rate Little League championship team to match. The Minor B Ave Maria Twins capped an undefeated season with a sweep through their league’s championship tournament. The story is at the Ave Herald.
You can congratulate the boys and their dads when you see them at the town’s Memorial Day party at the Water Park sponsored by the always patriotic Knights of Columbus – free admission and hot dogs! As we enjoy the long weekend, we can take some time to remember those who have given their lives to defend our God-given freedoms.
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Ave Maria couple with three #1 CDs signs St. Paul’s Boys Choir for debut album
You likely saw Kevin and Monica Fitzgibbons’ faces around town over the last several years. While Kevin was a student at Ave Maria School of Law their family spent a good deal of time each week in Ave Maria town. They moved with their five children to the Midwest last year, but recently decided to return to this area because they really enjoy being part of the Ave Maria community.
Kevin & Monica Fitzgibbons talk about their 3 #1 Classical CDs with Fr. Pacwa on EWTN
Prior to their law school adventure, they were both executives in the Hollywood recording industry. When they departed from those careers, they decided to found two new labels. This is how their recent press release puts it:
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Unashamed: May we always be a town that stands with Robbie George
This past week at the annual National Catholic Prayer Breakfast legal and political philosopher Robert George gave an address that will likely be remembered for decades. Closer to home, it will likely remind many of us why we have chosen to be faithful, and in particular to be part of the Ave Maria Project.
The question each of us today must face is this: Am I ashamed of the Gospel? And that question opens others: Am I prepared to pay the price that will be demanded if I refuse to be ashamed, if, in other words, I am prepared to give public witness to the massively politically incorrect truths of the Gospel, truths that the mandarins of an elite culture shaped by the dogmas of expressive individualism and megeneration liberalism do not wish to hear spoken? Or, put more simply, am I willing, or am I, in the end, unwilling, to take up my cross and follow Christ?
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Ave Maria’s Paul Adams: To aim at virtue and fall short does not a hypocrite make
Ave Maria is teeming with thoughtful writers, scholars and bloggers. Our neighbor and friend Paul Adams is an impressively-credentialed scholar (MA from Oxford, PhD from Berkeley) and convert whose writing is always edifying.
Today he has written about the absurd yet common phenomenon of Christians being called “hypocrite” in internet com boxes because they sin. Here is an excerpt:
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Ave Maria celebrates Holy Matrimony
Congratulations to Mr. & Mrs. Philip Barrows.
Wedding season in Ave Maria is a great opportunity to reflect on marriage. As our pope, St. John Paul the Great shared these thoughts on matrimony in Familiaris Consortio:
Ave Maria’s Pakaluk to Harvard’s Faust: Eucharistic worship is NOT “reasoned discourse and robust dissent”
Eucharistic Adoration at Harvard Square: “Reasoned discourse and robust dissent”?
Michael Pakaluk is an Ave Marian with close and longstanding ties to Harvard. There he met his late wife Ruth while they were both undergraduates. He later earned his PhD in Philosophy there, and his wife Catherine recently earned her PhD from Harvard. He also has close ties to Ave Maria (owns a home here, is raising his family here, is a professor here, some of his children attend college here, his mother lives here, his father-in-law lives here, his married son lives here, his married daughter lives here, etc.).
We shared his initial reaction to Harvard’s black mass here at AveMariaLiving.com. Yesterday Michael wrote about the Faustian response he received from black mass Harvard’s president in reply to Pakaluk’s letter to her. President Faust sent a form letter to “Mr. Pakaluk” (just some guy who has two degrees from Harvard, married Harvard alums, has for decades been a prominent
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10 things changing this summer in Ave Maria, Florida
While Summer doesn’t begin until June 21, the town of Ave Maria goes into summer mode once AMU has it’s graduation. Here are a few things in store during this break from the university’s academic year and from the “season” when resident snowbirds, tourists and pilgrims are absent.
1. AMU Summer Academic Term: Ave Maria University holds summer classes. Session I is from May 12 through June 21, 2014, and Session II is from June 23 through August 2, 2014.
2. Ave Maria Oratory Quasi-Parish schedule of Mass and Confession change (Ave Herald always has the updated Mass schedule).
Sunday Mass: 8 am Latin; 10 am English (also 4:15 vigil on Saturday when FOCUS is on campus May 27 to July 6).
Monday-Friday Mass: Noon (also 5:15 Mass when FOCUS is on campus May 27 to July 6)
Saturday Mass: 9 am Saturday Confession: 9:30 – 10:30 am
Wednesday Confession: 2:45 – 3:45 pm
3. FOCUS New Staff Training: Once again the campus of Ave Maria University will be the site where over 500 employees and staff from the Fellowship of Catholic University Students will hold New Staff Training. According to AMU sources: the FOCUS people will begin to arrive on May 27 and May 28, with the majority of the group of 420 staying until July 6. There may be a group of about 50 that will stay until July 15, and there will be one week where there will be up to 520 in the group.
Father McTeigue: More reparation for Harvard’s black mass
Older & better: Eucharistia est Veritas Christo et Ecclesiae – The Eucharist is the Truth of Christ and the Church
Last Thursday we shared with readers: 1) the evidence presented by Harvard alum Michael Pakaluk (an Ave Maria resident and professor at Ave Maria University) that the leaders of Harvard face a conundrum of their own making when it comes to what shall henceforth be known as Harvard’s black mass; 2) a beautiful rendering of one of Satan’s most powerful enemies, Saint Michael the Archangel, painted by the talented Cornelius Sullivan, a former art instructor at Harvard University who is an Ave Maria parishioner; and 3) the homily AMU’s Father Robert McTeigue, SJ, delivered as he led a public act of reparation and love.
On Friday Father McTeigue delivered another wonderful homily – another public act of reparation and love – joyfully proclaiming the “veritas” the Church has always vouchsafed: that the Eucharist is the Truth of Christ and the Church. He asked me to include his forwarding remarks, which are in italics:
As a priest, I am a servant, steward and guardian of the Eucharist. Consequently, the sacrilege to be hosted at Harvard on Monday is especially painful to me. You know that on Thursday, when I first learned of this outrage, I changed my plans for the Mass I was scheduled for that day, along with the homily I had planned. I offered the Votive Mass of the Precious Blood. On Friday, I was scheduled for the noon Mass here. With the impending Harvard scandal still on my heart, I offered the Votive Mass in Honor of the Holy Eucharist. Here is the homily I preached that day. Again, I must say how grateful I am as a priest to be of service to a community with such a deep reverence and love for our Eucharistic Lord.
When I was a boy, I grew up hearing stories of my Italian grandfather, Guido Formisano. On Sundays, your Sunday obligation was only partly fulfilled by going to Mass. Your obligation was completed by eating Sunday dinner, with Papa at the head of the table. These were great and grand dinners. Papa would be all the leaves into the table in order to extend it. And when they ran out of chairs, they would put ironing boards between stools in order to seat everyone. The homemade food and homemade wine appeared endless. Everyone enjoyed the dinners Papa presided over, but few really knew what those dinners cost him.
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Ave Maria University’s 10th Commencement
Some highlights from AMU’s 10th annual commencement exercises held today. The first two photos are from AMU student photographer Jeremiah Rappley’s excellent social media album that has a hundred more images of the weekend events.
More images and video clips below.
Donahue Catholic honors fallen Army pilot and military alums
Margaret Padgett in front of the Major David Padgett Wall of Honor, newly installed at Donahue Catholic Academy in Ave Maria
This afternoon the Donahue Catholic Academy of Ave Maria dedicated a Wall of Honor to honor Army pilot Major David Padgett who was killed during the Vietnam War. The founder of the school, Marine Corps veteran Tom Monaghan, and the school’s benefactrix namesake, Mrs. Rhodora Donahue, were also on hand for the ceremony in the library where the Wall of Honor is installed. Read the rest of this entry »
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Ave Maria’s Michael Pakaluk and Fr. McTeigue on Harvard’s black mass
Saint Michael by artist Cornelius Sullivan, a member of the Ave Maria community. Saint Michael’s assistance is invoked against the devil at the end of every Mass in Ave Maria. Sullivan has taught Drawing at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design.
UPDATE 5/12/2014: Father McTeigue offered another act of reparation here.
By now many have heard of Harvard University’s “black mass” scheduled for May 12. The always engaging head of Ave Maria’s Department of Philosphy, Michael Pakaluk, who as an alum (undergrad and PhD) knows the black mass Harvard well, served up a list of pithy comments about the situation on his blog. Here is one to tempt you to click:
2. Yes, of course, the administration would not be benignly tolerant if it were the reenactment of a KKK lynching (for purposes of cultural edification, of course), or a ritualized Koran burning. It’s too obvious to say this. But it had to be said.
When my good friend, Father Robert McTeigue, SJ, an adjunct philosophy professor at Ave Maria University, heard about Harvard’s black mass, he changed his homily, went to say Mass at the Oratory as scheduled, put on red vestments, and
Sheep without a shepherd get eaten by wolves: Good Shepherd Sunday (TLM) with Fr. McTeigue
Good Shepherd by Márton Váró in the Ave Maria Oratory
The readings for Good Shepherd Sunday – Second Sunday after Easter, were the inspiration for this homily given at the Extraordinary Form Mass by Father Robert McTeigue, SJ, a homilist par excellence who teaches Philosophy at Ave Maria University and preaches almost every day to the students and parishioners of Ave Maria, and who asks for your prayers as he completes his forthcoming book, I Have Someone to Tell You: A Jesuit Heralds the Gospel, which will include a sampling of his homilies and some essays on preaching. We invite comments below.
Do you want to hear a story? My sister has a little dog named Glenda. She is a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, a pit bull the color of honey. Glenda is the luckiest, happiest dog in the world. She has three beds to sleep in, each one with a pillow. She gets presents for Christmas and her birthday. My sister talks to Glenda as if she were a child, and refers to the dog as “mother’s lamb.” Glenda gets love and attention from the moment she wakes up to the moment she goes to sleep in one of her three beds.
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Sunrise in Ave Maria
Ave Maria’s lakes and trails are a great place for a morning walk or run.
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Divine Mercy Sunday with Fr. McTeigue: Be religious, not spiritual
The readings for Divine Mercy Sunday, which focus on the Lord’s boundless mercy, were the inspiration for this homily given by Father Robert McTeigue, SJ, a homilist par excellence who teaches Philosophy at Ave Maria University and preaches almost every day to the students and parishioners of Ave Maria, and who asks for your prayers as he completes his forthcoming book, I Have Someone to Tell You: A Jesuit Heralds the Gospel, which will include a sampling of his homilies and some essays on preaching. We invite comments below.
If I were a lazy preacher, and you all were an ordinary congregation, we could wrap up this homily quite quickly. I could say, “Thomas doubted and made Jesus mad; then Thomas believed and made Jesus happy. Doubting is bad; believing is good. In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” And then you all could reward my laziness by thinking to yourselves, “Well, that was useless, but at least it didn’t take very long,” and then we could get on with the rest of Mass.
Being named after Saint John Paul the Great (a town where it’s common, and 1 young John Paul who is attending the canonization)
On the eve of Divine Mercy Sunday when Pope John Paul II will officially enter the canon of saints of Christ’s Church, many families in the town of Ave Maria are also planning a feast day for their sons – or their Sister! It is fitting that a town where one of the streets is named “Pope John Paul II Boulevard” – a town whose founding was inspired by that pope’s “new evangelization” – has so many boys and young men named after that extraordinary man.
His papacy saw a rise in the popularity of the name “John Paul” for newborns in the USA as shown in this graphic, with spikes in popularity based on events in his life:
How many newborns were named “John Paul” in the USA each year?
Of course not everyone bearing the name received it as a newborn boy. Sister John Paul, OP, who teaches in Ave Maria at Donahue Catholic, received the name when she entered Religious life.
“I received the name John Paul as my religious name the day I received the holy habit of St. Dominic, August 5, 2001. ‘John Paul II, we love you!'” – window at the Mother House of the Dominican Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist
Among the estimated dozen John Paul’s in Ave Maria, several have provided photographs, below.
John Paul Raiger
John Paul Klucik
John Paul Tamisiea
John Paul Moore, who made his First Holy Communion today.
John Paul Moore – born second – was blessed while in the womb with his twin sister Rhodora by John Paul II. And while the parents had no idea they were having twins, the Pope knew because he gave them two extra rosaries (instead of one extra) for the baby!
One lucky Ave Maria boy bearing the name is having the trip of a lifetime with his mother – they traveled to Rome to attend tomorrow’s canonization ceremony! John Paul Allan’s friends and neighbors have been able to follow his special pilgrimage via Facebook. Mrs. Allan owns a Catholic gift and book store and home school supply store called By Way of the Family that she named after a phrase from Saint Pope John Paul”s apostolic exhortation Familiaris Consortio: “The future of humanity passes by way of the family.”
John Paul Allan and his mother Chelsea with the Vatican in background on their canonization pilgrimage in Rome.
Pope John Paul II canonization banner over the entrance to St. Peter’s Basilica with John Paul Allan standing under it at St. Peter’s Basilica.
John Paul Allan praying at the tomb of Pope John Paul II the day before his canonization.
John Paul Allan praying at the tomb of Pope John XXIII the day before his canonization.
John Paul Allan and his mom Chelsea sent this image showing where they are standing in line at 3:00 AM on the eve of John Paul II’s canonization.
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Pontificate of Hope (that continues to inspire our town)
This reflection (below), penned by Cistercian Father Edmund Waldstein after St. John Paul was beatified in 2011, highlights what many Catholics of my generation found in his Petrine ministry: hope. That hope in the nature of who we are as creatures of a Creator will continue to fuel the flame that is the Gospel. That hope is precisely why the Ave Maria projects were founded.
We can look forward with hope to the writing and teaching of theologian Pater Edmund, and of his theologian parents Michael and Susan here in Ave Maria, who have done much already to spread this good news that is St. John Paul’s theology – especially his Theology of the Body.
My confrere Pater Johannes Paul and I went to Rome with a group of pilgrims for the beatification of Pope John Paul II. It was tremendously moving and all that sort of thing, but the trip was also kind of exhausting and so I actually fell asleep during the sermon at the Beatification Mass. Reading the sermon when I got back, I was struck by the following passage, in which Pope Benedict gives a remarkably pithy summary of the center of his predecessor’s teaching:
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“Balloons Over Paradise” means lots of balloons over Ave Maria
This weekend the Balloons Over Paradise event near Ave Maria actually featured a flight of at least a dozen hot air balloons that flew over Ave Maria on Saturday morning. Several of the balloons landed in Ave Maria. These photos all appeared on social media sites even as the balloons were in the air:
Balloon’s-eye view? Not really. This is what the Oratory might look like from a balloon, but this was taken by Ave Maria resident Scott Shneider as he inspected the roof earlier in April.
Balloon lands in Bellera neighborhood in Ave Maria.
Balloons fly over Ave Maria, Florida.
Balloons photographed from a balcony at the center of Ave Maria, Florida.
Balloons fly bast the Ave Maria Oratory.
Balloons drifting over Ave Maria, Florida.
Balloon making a landing in Ave Maria.
Balloon lands in Emerson Park in Ave Maria.
Giant bear looms over Ave Maria.
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23 children make First Holy Communion in Ave Maria
Pastor Fr. Cory Mayer and catechists with communicants – Ave Maria Oratory First Holy Communion
First Communicants process in for Mass at the Ave Maria Oratory
Dominican Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist attended the First Communion Mass in Ave Maria
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Recent Herald stories: Ave Maria Water #1, Veterans home proposal, more
Since its founding in 2007, the town of Ave Maria has been able to consistently rely on one solid source for news: the Ave Maria Herald, a project of Pat Sette and David Shnaider, who moved their family to town in the beginning. We are fortunate to have them as part of our community. These are some of the stories in the Herald recently about Ave Maria:
Ave Maria Is a Potential Site for VA Nursing Home
Ave Maria Water Judged Florida’s Best for 2nd time
Travis Curtright Honored with 2nd Laub-Novak Award
Laura Mastandrea Named to All-Area HS Soccer Team
Donahue Football Players Receive State-wide Awards
Former AMU Student Remembered as “Everyday Hero”
Ave Maria Oratory: Lumen Christi
Easter Vigil Mass at the Ave Maria Oratory
photo by Rudy Vasquez
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Easter Sunday with Fr. McTeigue: How will I know it’s Easter?
The readings for today’s Mass for Easter Sunday, which focus on the Resurrection of the Lord, were the inspiration for this homily given by Father Robert McTeigue, SJ, a homilist par excellence who teaches Philosophy at Ave Maria University and preaches almost every day to the students and parishioners of Ave Maria, and who asks for your prayers as he completes his forthcoming book, I Have Someone to Tell You: A Jesuit Heralds the Gospel, which will include a sampling of his homilies and some essays on preaching. We invite comments below.
Would you mind if I asked you a question? It is a question with an obvious answer, but I want us to find a not-so-obvious answer. Are you ready? The question is this: How do you know when it is time to celebrate Easter? The obvious answer would be, “That’s easy Father—just look at a calendar.” A more sophisticated answer might be, “I think it’s got something to do with the full moon and the spring equinox.” Now, that’s ok, but that’s not quite what I’m looking for.
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Because I’m happy – it’s Easter
Because I’m happy – Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof
Because I’m happy – Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth
Because I’m happy – Clap along if you know what happiness is to you
Because I’m happy – Clap along if you feel like that’s what you wanna do
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To celebrate this incredibly joyous occasion of Easter, please enjoy “Happy” performed by the Ave Maria University’s Shakespeare in Performance troupe as a prelude to What You Will. Lyrics are from the hit song “Happy” by Pharrell Williams.
Tickets to What You Will are free but you must reserve seats in advance at AveShakespeare@gmail.com. All shows are held in the Academic Building, room 1019 at Ave Maria University. Dates and start times are below:
Wed, 4/23: 7:30 PM.
Thurs, 4/24, 7:30 PM.
Fri, 4/25: Sold Out!
Sat, 4/26, 2:00 PM & 7:30 PM
Sun, 4/27, 2:00 PM
All evening shows begin seating at 7:00 PM, pre-show starts at 7:15, doors close at 7:30. Afternoon shows begin seating at 1:30 PM, pre-show starts at 1:45, doors close at 2:00.
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In need of corporal works, He left
To lose – to give my self – to love*
From crib to cross the life He led
Was feeding us and being fed
In giving all He had to give
His body: food, that I might live
Yes from that wood He wished to feed
His flock by giving me His need
Such wounded need, to give me heaven
The Lamb in need of works, all seven
Evicted from His temple home (1)
Imprisoned by the man from Rome (2)
Sickened by each brutal blow (3)
A grimmer day no man could know
Naked (4) and deprived of bread (5)
And thirsting so (6), and finally dead (7)
In need of corporal works, He left
A humble gift for His bereft
That strengthens us to ever give
To ‘suage His need in those who live
His gift to me was being killed
By giving so was He fulfilled
I too must lose my “self” to find
The dest’ny of my heart and mind
To lose – to give my self – to love
A humble moon, reflection of
The gleaming giving Trinity
I seek and hope to ever be
And thus I hope to ever see
In glory His Divinity
By losing everything, I gain
By losing, everything I gain
A family’s Way of the Cross*
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Catechesis of the Good Shepherd in Ave Maria
This recent blog piece gives high praise to the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. Here is an excerpt:
[This] program for children has given the kids something I could never be sure I was conveying: a simple, synthesized, profound involvement with the Gospel and with the liturgical life of the Church.
Did you know this program is present here in Ave Maria at the Montessori school in town? On the website, one local family offers this testimonial:
…We are especially grateful that Ave Maria Montessori incorporates the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd so that our children can experience the truth and beauty of Sacred Scripture and the Liturgy in a way that is accessible to them…
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Great News: Scanlon new athletic & formation director at Donahue Catholic
Two sources have confirmed that beloved Shamrock football coach Rich Scanlon has been hired by Donahue Catholic as its Director of Athletics, Director of Formation, and Physical Education Instructor. Last week Coach Read the rest of this entry »
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Sunset carriage ride in Ave Maria
A friend whose home overlooks Annunciation Circle posted this amazing photo and its caption on social media. She gave me permission to share it here. Thanks, MR!
Update: You might be able to arrange a similar ride by contacting Ave Maria’s own equestrian center, The Stable Life.
A beautiful evening here in Ave. A family is taking a carriage ride through the town of Ave and enjoying the sunset.
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Typical Saturday in Ave Maria: cappuccino, Mass, little league, rugby, confession, brewing beer, etc.
Many people arrive at this blog by googling terms such as “what is Ave Maria really like”. This post tries to give some insight by sharing what a typical Saturday looks like for an Ave Maria family. These are some of the things members of my family did yesterday: walked to adoration and morning Mass, made cappuccino for a neighbor, biked to the little league game, walked to church to make First Confession, biked to 
local ice cream shop to celebrate, walked across the street to play/watch rugby matches, biked to neighbor’s porch to brew (and consume) India pale ale, visited grandmother down the street who just got home from hip replacement (and arranged to have pastor bring Holy Communion to her on Sunday), 
watched toddler of a young couple who had a date night, brought guitar to neighbor for restringing, walked over to a praise festival at the university, and walked to the Catholic school to play organized games at the gym. I’m sure I only left out a dozen other things.
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Afternoon pilgrimage with Mother Teresa: “If there are poor on the moon we will go there”
I had wanted to see the new Mother Teresa exhibit in Ave Maria since it opened on April 2. After some good news at work, I walked downstairs and headed down the block toward the exhibit to make an act of thanksgiving to God. And I am so glad I did. The exhibit was very moving. For anyone who felt Mother’s absence when she left this world it will be hard not to well up with emotion at every information panel in the exhibit.
What a gift it is to have here in Ave Maria Mother’s Read the rest of this entry »
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Throwback Saturday: Oratory dedication 2008
It was a great day! Click image below for full story (it’s short but worth a read). Can you find the two references to AMU’ s two mottos?
This was written when Bishop Dewane dedicated the Ave Maria Oratory in 2008
Click thumbnails to go to Naples Daily News coverage.
Click here for the video.
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What’s the population of Ave Maria?
At tonight’s annual AMU Founder’s Club Dinner in Naples, the chief operating officer of Barron Collier Companies, Brian Goguen, gave an Ave Maria town update to the nearly 300 attendees. No doubt, the Ave Herald has more details, but these are some highlights:
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West Point and Ave Maria
Jack Donahue, West Point Class of 1946, is one of Ave Maria’s biggest benefactors, as this bronze plaque behind the Oratory explains
What do Ave Maria and West Point have in common? Not much, really. But we can stretch to find a connection in order to share a really neat story that hit the internet this week. So here goes: Jack Donahue, who along with his wife Rhodora (that Rhodora) is one of Ave Maria University’s biggest benefactors, graduated from West Point in 1946. That really is enough of a connection, I think.*
The story being shared is simple, except that its two-dozen photographs give a glimpse into an American treasure that still holds fast to at least some anachronistic traditions. When you click through, be sure to scroll down to see a portion of the 4400 cadets who stream into the mess hall and simultaneously sit down to eat in a 20-second time-lapse video.
Just one ofmore six wings in the Gothic mess hall that seats 4400 cadets, who all sit down simultaneously to eat three times a day
*Full disclosure: As an alum and president of the West Point Society of Naples, yours truly is quite biased (and ate probably 3500 meals in this mess hall).
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A year in Ave Maria, Florida
Bob and Erin Campbell have lived in town since almost the beginning. Hailing from Iowa, Erin is an alum of Ave Maria College. Bob is from Bayonne, NJ, and his alma mater is Franciscan University of Steubenville. Both Bob and Erin are Marine Corps veterans. They and their three daughters just welcomed a new boy to the family. Bob helps coach the football team at Donahue Catholic and is active with the Knights of Columbus and the Naples St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee. They are both real estate agents at the John R. Wood Properties office located in Ave Maria.
They created this video to celebrate the past twelve months doing business in the town they call home, Ave Maria.
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Wired Magazine does the Ave Maria a bit differently
You may recall the work in Ave Maria of photographer Rylan Steele from a prior piece (and his website is here). Today Wired magazine featured his photographs of Ave Maria along with his reflections about the town. Unlike most of the pieces about Ave Maria that simply restate all the tired caricatures of the town, this one actually highlights the photographer’s insistence that we are genuine – a real community of people with admirable intentions.*
“I’ve started to identify with the people living there and why they might want to live in a place where they know their neighbor, can leave their bike in the front yard overnight, and probably the doors unlocked.”
He, a non-believer, defends us! It seems that Steele – having spent time with us – actually cares about us and doesn’t want people to accept the caricatures. Thanks Rylan. Please keep coming back. 
* Yes, the headline stinks, and yes there is a bit of the typical Ave-bashing, but we can lay that at the feet of the Wired editor. And the photos are stale – from 2011.
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Ave Maria Living.com 