East of Troost Many Catholics in Kansas City are surprised to learn that, though there are many Catholic churches west of Troost and several to the north around I-70, Saint Therese Little Flower (STLF) is the only one east of Troost Avenue to the Truman Sports Complex...

Youth Anxiety In his best-selling book, The Anxious Generation, Jonathan Haidt contrasts Baby Boomers and Gen X children to younger generations.  Those born more than fifty years ago experienced a play-based childhood filled with human interaction and physical...

UPON THIS ROCK Read on blog or Reader Death Doula Many people are familiar with birth doulas, those lovely souls who assist pregnant women to better understand what to expect when they are expecting, who accompany them through the birth of their child and sometimes...

UPON THIS ROCK Read on blog or Reader Succeed On Our Own A mother of four young children recently reminded me that a primary task of parents is to teach children to get along without them, to succeed on their own, to develop skills so that they can take care of...

Right To Speak Freedom of Speech, as spelled out in the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, protects the right of individuals or communities to openly articulate opinions and ideas without interference, retaliation, or punishment from the government. ...

UPON THIS ROCK Read on blog or Reader Francis Xavier, SJ Saint Francis Xavier (SFX) Parish, established in Kansas City in 1909, has been led by Jesuits for its entire 115-year history.  Lack of manpower, however, sadly forces the order to withdraw from parish...

Mother’s Day Reflection (Written by Cindy Lange-Kubich) This is for all the mothers who didn’t win Mother of the Year, all the runner-ups and wannabes, the mothers who’re too tired to enter, or too busy to care.  This for all the mothers who froze their buns off on...

UPON THIS ROCK Read on blog or Reader She Sat So He Could Stand On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white man and was arrested because state law dictated her to do so.  She was a seamstress and worked hard all...

WRITTEN BY FATHER DON FARNANAPRIL 11, 2024 URBAN ADAPTATION I am concerned about maintaining our Catholic presence in Kansas City’s urban core in the future.  We have a limited number of priests serving our diocese; the bishop and diocesan leaders must send priests...

There are about 220 Catholic colleges and universities in the United States, a number that has diminished over the past decade with several closings each year.  The most famous schools are those known for their sports teams, like football powerhouse Notre Dame, or...

Kids & The Easter Story Dr. Ralph Wilson, director of Joyful Heart Renewal Ministries, once wrote: “If you ask your average heathen youngster what Easter is about, he’ll tell you about the Easter bunny and finding decorative baskets filled with annoying plastic...

Week Called Holy             When fishes flew and forests walked, and figs grew upon thorn,             Some moment when the moon was blood, then surely, I was born.             With monstrous head and sickening cry and ears like errant wings,             The devil’s...

UPON THIS ROCK Read on blog or Reader Inexplicable Irish A group of friends I know happen to be pretty good singers.  They discovered this reality one night at a new south Kansas City bar, Corner Cocktail, some forty-five years ago.  One of them was forced by his dear...

UPON THIS ROCK Read on blog or Reader Closer to Fine “I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains, I looked to the children, I drank from the fountains.  There’s more than one answer to my questions, pointing me in a crooked line.  And the less I seek my source as a...

Well, That’s One Thing We’ve Got “You say we’ve got nothing in common, no common ground to start from, and that we’re falling apart…And I said, ‘What about Breakfast at Tiffany’s?’ And she said, ‘I think I remember that film, and as I recall, we both kinda liked it.’...

Closer to Fine “I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains, I looked to the children, I drank from the fountains.  There’s more than one answer to my questions, pointing me in a crooked line.  And the less I seek my source as a definitive, the closer I am to fine.”...

Valentine’s Day Massacre On Valentine’s Day, 1929, in Chicago, when tension between organized crime gangs and city police exploded, there was a bloody massacre that is still talked about today.  Four years later in June, at Kansas City’s Union Station, another...

Super Multidirectional The victory parade route in downtown Kansas City is becoming well known, much like the Mardi Gras parade route in New Orleans each year.  This week they are on back-to-back days as the Chiefs accomplished the rare feat of winning back-to-back...

Mardi Gras The origins of Mardi Gras can be traced to Medieval Europe.  Our American rituals are rooted mainly with practices dating back to 17th Century France when King Louis XIV commissioned explorers to establish colonies in the New World.  French-Canadians, Jean...

UPON THIS ROCKRead on blog or Reader Reactivated Podcast A year ago, working with a wonderful team at Rockhurst, we activated a podcast with the same title as my blog: “Upon This Rock.”  We began by interviewing Alvin Brooks, for whom the future Alvin Brooks Center...

Year of Prayer Two thousand and twenty-four has been named a Year of Prayer by the Holy Father.  This designation is made in preparation for the Jubilee or Holy Year of 2025.  In a sense, this is to be a quiet year amidst the thunder of war, noise of political...

University Shift Two years ago, Father Tom Curran, president of Rockhurst University, asked if I would be willing to join the college staff to advance its mission.  He indicated that I had a unique position as an alumnus who is a diocesan priest that served in the...

Gospel of Peace Father John Dear recently published his latest book, The Gospel of Peace, in which he offers commentary on Jesus’ mission of nonviolence.  In it, he analyzes the words and actions of Jesus from a lens that magnifies Christ’s role and purpose as the...

UPON THIS ROCK The Magi’s Magis “Magis” is a Latin adverb that roughly translates into English as “greater” or “more” or “higher degree.”  It was made popular as a noun (the more) by Jesuits that follow the spiritual path of their founder, Ignatius of Loyola, who...

Lingering Holiday The Hallmark Christmas channel has endless stories featuring a girl named Holly or Noel and a boy named Nick or Chris who, after one of them achieves great success in the big city, returns to their hometown of Winterland or Candyville where they get...

Enough “Sometimes we are so busy adding up our troubles that we forget to count our blessings.” I don’t know where that quote originated but I’ve been thinking about it since Thanksgiving morning in the Church of the Little Flower where some of KC’s inner-city...

The Trail I live along the Old Santa Fe Trail, one of three major roadways originating nearly 200 years ago along the Missouri River heading west.  Recently a landscape crew dug up a horseshoe in my front yard that dated back to the era of wagon trains, frontiersmen,...

Autumn Giving There are lots of opportunities to participate in Autumn Giving.  If you’d like, I can serve as a conduit for your generosity or, in holiday language, we can make elves of ourselves. Journey to New Life, a ministry that assists incarcerated people to...

Ecclesial Twister The Vatican is a long way from Kansas City.  But what is happening there impacts us here.  This semester, I have the privilege to work at two local Catholic universities, Rockhurst and Avila.  On the campuses, I witness tremendous diversity. ...

UPON THIS ROCK Age-Old New Ways When Jesus introduced new ways of thinking about religion to His Jewish community, most of the church hierarchy of the time did not accept it or want anything to do with it.  When His followers began to reach out and engage non-Jews, it...

Forgive Us as We Forgive The late American author and theologian, Frederick Buechner, once wrote: “To forgive somebody is to say one way or another, ‘You have done something so unspeakable, and by all rights I should call it quits between us. Both my pride and my...

UPON THIS ROCK October Saints “May today there be peace within you.  May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.  May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.  May you use those gifts that you have received and...

Critical On a recent trip to Italy, a Roman guide commented about their city’s many visitors from around the globe and, perhaps to appease me and my companions, spoke favorably of those from the United States saying, “I am always impressed with the candor by which...

The Penske File In a particular Seinfeld episode, George has a job interview with a company president who is leaving town.  George shows up the next workday, but no one there knows that he was hired.  Nevertheless, he is given the Penske file.  Having no idea what do...

UPON THIS ROCK Descent of the Holy Spirit The third glorious mystery is the promise of Christ, the gift of love, the outpouring of God’s Spirit upon the earth.  Sixty years ago, participants of the Second Vatican Council prayed to the Holy Spirit for a new...

UPON THIS ROCK Growth with Change Cardinal John Henry Newman once said, “In a higher realm it may be otherwise but here below to live is to change; and to be perfect is to change often.”  From the moment we burst into this existence we scream out with divine spiritual...

UPON THIS ROCK Neighborhood Justice I met George O’Laughlin in the early 1990s when I was assigned to my first pastorate; it was in the inner city.  He was the first person I knew who was a member of two Catholic parishes at the same time: one in the suburban...

Mostly Catholic In an interview with Mr. Alvin Brooks, namesake of the Alvin Brooks Center for Faith-Justice at Rockhurst University, I praised him for his leadership role and servanthood within the Catholic Church.  He clarified that he is “mostly Catholic.”  Over...

Magis On the Rockhurst University campus, there is a building which everyone refers to as The MAC (Magis Activity Center).  Most of its space is dedicated to equipment for training, shaping, and strengthening bodies’ physical well-being.  “Magis” is an unusual word. ...

Judgment or Condemnation? A decade ago, at World Youth Day, Pope Francis spoke about God’s role as our judge: “God judges us by loving us.  If I embrace his love then I am saved; if I refuse it, then I am condemned—not by him but my own self.  That is because God...

UPON THIS ROCK Best and Worst of Times For local sports fans, it is the best of times and worst of times as major league baseball gives way to the national football league.  The worst season the Royals ever had was in 2005 when we won only 56 games against 106...

UPON THIS ROCK Urban Connection I salute those who live, learn, work, worship, dine, or do volunteer activities in the inner city.  Urban centers tend to get abandoned by sprawling populations, but we know that, just as with a human body, the core must be strengthened...

UPON THIS ROCK G*R*A*C*E I recently came across a thirty-year-old newspaper clipping about angels (Advice from the Angels by Tanya Barrientos, Knight-Ridder News).  It caught my attention, especially its encouragement for us, mere mortals, to avail ourselves to angles...

UPON THIS ROCK Upcoming Up & Comers As part of a community or community of faith, part of a city or civic community, part of a family or group of friends, we’re always interested in what’s coming up, or when and where we might gather next, or how our attention...

UPON THIS ROCK Mary of Knots Like many Catholics, I have a rosary that I carry in my pocket.  I’m not sure how I got into the habit, but it has been with me for most of my life.  I go through lots of rosaries because they tend to eventually break: a tiny strand of its...

UPON THIS ROCK Word Cereal Polarity is natural but polarization stymies progress and stability.  Community and communion are good, but communism is not.  Secularity is a reality, but secularism is damaging.  The clerical state can be holy, but clericalism is evil....

UPON THIS ROCK Bonds of Brotherhood For the past five years or so, I have met periodically (roughly quarterly) with a group of guys who desire to deepen their spiritual lives.  Their nucleus is the Rockhurst High School Class of 1990, though a few others, including a...

Please Don’t Tell Me Quite often, church officials, when told by parishioners about something that is not in-line with ecclesial norms (even if they agree with it), will say: “Please, don’t tell me…”  The issue might center around what they’ve chosen to do with the...

Site logo image UPON THIS ROCK Spirit in the Sky Father Don Farnan Jun 25 Next to Danny Boy, undertakers report that Norman Greenbaum’s Spirit in the Sky is the most requested funeral song for services marking the end of life. When the Jesus Rebellion was overtaking...

UPON THIS ROCK What I’m Doing & Why Nearly a year ago, I was transferred from Saint Charles Borromeo Parish in Kansas City’s northland to Rockhurst University in midtown, along with some neighboring parishes.  Returning to my alma mater after forty years and to...

Truth’s Long Journey When Bella Baumfree changed her name to Sojourner Truth in 1843 after being sold and bought four times, suffering decades of enslavement, beatings, rapes, whippings, harsh physical labor, and violent punishment, she was inscribed with a new...

UPON THIS ROCK Eucharistic Revival Father Don Farnan Jun 6 The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is initiating a three-year Eucharistic revival this month to encourage Catholics and others to grow closer to Jesus through holy communion.  The effort...

May turns to June, schools close and pools open, baseball diamonds promise fields of dreams, lake activity multiplies and amplifies, summer vacations begin, and children frolic in an age of innocence.  As George and Ira Gershwin wrote, “Summertime and the livin’ is...

N THIS ROCK BY FATHER DON FARNAN WRITTEN BY FATHER DON FARNANMAY 18, 2023 VIOLENCE IN OUR CITY On Saturday morning, June 3, 9:00-12, Saint Francis Xavier Parish will host a retreat entitled, “Violence in Our City.”  All are invited to come and participate.  The...

Violence In Our City Father Don Farnan May 18 On Saturday morning, June 3, 9:00-12, Saint Francis Xavier Parish will host a retreat entitled, “Violence in Our City.”  All are invited to come and participate.  The retreat, which will take place in the church sanctuary...

Warts and All Father Don Farnan May 14 The late Catholic author and historian, Thomas Cahill, once said, “Just as banks can make people poor, hospitals make them sick, and schools make them ignorant, so can churches make people evil—and the history of our church is...

Heads Spinning Father Don Farnan May 7 About a decade ago, friends of mine attended a high school reunion at their all-boys Catholic school and met the first alumna: their transgendered classmate.   As society rapidly changes, many of us have a tough time keeping up. ...

Immigration Plight Father Don Farnan May 3 Many of us are intrigued and, at the same time, agitated when hearing the story about Joseph fleeing from his homeland to another country, with his young wife and little son, seeking safety while being chased by murderous...

More Retreat Opportunities Father Don Farnan Apr 27 The May retreat offerings at my spirituality center filled up quickly.  It tells me that people are eager to enhance their relationship with God and, subsequently, their relations with others.  These sessions will be...

Seventy Times Seven Times Father Don Farnan Apr 20 When Peter asked Jesus, “How many times must I forgive, seven times?”  He responded, “Not just seven but seventy times seven times.”  There may be a few different translations of the seven and seventy numbers but...

COME REST AWHILE In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus said to His disciples, “Come away by yourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.”  This scene occurs in a very busy chapter of miraculously feeding thousands of people, healing others, battling storms, enduring the death of...

Old Ghosts Father Don Farnan Apr 5 Each spring as we recall the passion of Christ, we recollect His walk to Calvary and our own walk of destiny.  As He encountered good and bad people, from soldiers carrying out His execution and religious leaders demanding His death...

FSC Website Father Don Farnan Apr 1 Though it has taken me a while, this week I am able to introduce a website for the Farnan Spirituality Center (FSC).  You can visit it by clicking here, thanks to Lane Lucas, webmaster for Saint Charles Church and Borromeo Academy....

ather Don Farnan Mar 30 I have had a few recent encounters with students, alumni, and friends of Rockhurst University that, I believe, will help shape my role there in upcoming years.  They all pointed to the value of friendships.  Perhaps, most explicit was the...

Carry On Wayward Son Father Don Farnan Mar 20 In Robert Services’ famous poem, “Carry On,” he encourages human engagement in every aspect of life, from the youthful energy of overzealous adolescents to the struggled breathing of those in their final days on earth.  He...

DAVID BROOKS Author David Brooks will be the guest of Rockhurst University later this month, speaking about the road to character in today’s world.  Among his many best-selling books are The Social Animal, The Second Mountain, and The Road to Character.  He is a...

UPON THIS ROCK Time For Forgiveness In addition to being a time for prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, Lent is a season of reconciliation and healing, a time for forgiveness: to both give it and receive it.  Each of us has been hurt relationally or damaged emotionally...

UPON THIS ROCK Desert to Mountaintop Father Don Farnan Mar 2 Each ecclesial year, early days of the Lenten season take us into the desert with Jesus to encounter the darkness of demons that haunt us, and then to the mountaintop to catch a glimpse of a higher, brighter...

TO DUST YOU SHALL RETURN There are several formulas used for receiving ashes to begin the Lenten season.  The most common ritual is to be smeared on the forehead with soot while a ministering agent proclaims: “Remember you are dust and unto dust you shall return.” ...

UPON THIS ROCK Love Is In The Air Love is in the air on Valentine’s Day.  According to legends surrounding the saint for whom this day is named, he encouraged courtship and marriage among young couples of his time while the local emperor discouraged soldiers from...

Father Don Farnan Feb 9 Strengthened by recent gridiron mettle and fortified by local beliefs, we’re incentivized by the determination of the Kansas City Chiefs. The injury list was extensive: many side-lined, while others play in pain, amidst fractures, dislocations,...

PHILLY In my senior year of college, the Kansas City Royals went to the World Series for the first time but lost the fall classic to the team from Philadelphia, four games to two.  That was forty-two years ago—a long time to hold on to something.  But that’s what...

Father Don Farnan Jan 26 I am no expert on yoga.  But I know that some people think it’s focus is Hindu spirituality that promotes pantheism, the belief that everything is God and God is everything (“pan” means all and “theos” means God).  For them, physical poses...

THE POOR WILL BE WITH US ALWAYS Earlier this week, urban parishes in Kansas City came together to commemorate and celebrate the birth and life of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., his mission, ministry, and message.  King knew that injustice will be with us...

ENGAGEMENT Increasing numbers of engaged couples do not have a parish in which to host their wedding or they get told by a church official that they don’t qualify for the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony for various reasons, e.g., they’re not registered members, they’re...

Father Don Farnan Jan 8 As the NFL’s regular season is completed, our attention, perhaps even obsession, for the next month will be dedicated to the play-offs and championship games.  Looking back on this and recent years, the National Football League has been a...

TO DAYS GONE BY At the end 1877, the young Scottish poet, Rabbie Burns, found himself with mates and muckers at a pub where he embellished ancestral ballads passed down by older muckers who recalled times that evaporated into history.  Whether sober recollections of...

ather Don Farnan Dec 28 Returning to racially integrated communities in Kansas City’s urban core this year, I also attempt to return to cultural rituals and inspiring traditions different from those around which I grew up.  One that gets hidden amidst Christmas,...

BE NOT AFRAID In late September of 1978 when the Archbishop of Krakow was chosen as the first non-Italian pope in nearly 500 years, the future Saint John Paul II stepped onto the world stage with the words: “Be not afraid.”  His prophetic message echoed that of sacred...

Father Don Farnan Dec 16 In Bethlehem, pilgrims enter the Church of the Nativity through the Door of Humility.  It is structured so that only children and short people can enter standing up.  Adults must become diminutive by crouching down or bowing so they can pass...

Conversion Conversation Father Don Farnan Dec 12 The etymology of “conversion” and “conversation” are similar.  From Latin roots, “con” means with or together; “ver” or “vertere” is a reference to turning or changing; “sion” or “sation” implies an action.  Converting...

UPON THIS ROCK One Foot There Father Don Farnan Dec 7 Father Tom Curran, SJ, former president of Rockhurst University, often spoke to students about having one foot on campus and one foot out in the community.  He wanted them to realize that the main purpose of their...

Advent Father Don Farnan Nov 30 “Advent” comes from the Latin word adventus which means The Coming.  Liturgical, societal, and religious themes of the Advent season warn us to stay awake, be alert, get ready, and prepare a way.  The societal impact is probably most...

WRITTEN BY FATHER DON FARNANNOVEMBER 12, 2022 NATIVE PILGRIMS As little school children put on the silver belt buckled black hats of Pilgrims or colorful feathered head gear of Native Americans to sit in circles with paper turkeys traced from their handprint and to...

WRITTEN BY FATHER DON FARNANNOVEMBER 8, 2022 REBUILD MY CHURCH When Giovanni Bernadone (who we know as Francis of Assisi) rejected his father’s business to live among the poor in the thirteenth century, he walked the hills of his homeland, wandering into the little...

h UPON THIS ROCK BY FATHER DON FARNAN   WRITTEN BY FATHER DON FARNANOCTOBER 3, 2022 SACRAMENTAL MARRIAGE A parent recently approached me about a daughter who was engaged to a guy who had been married before and is intimidated by the church’s annulment process. ...

UPON THIS ROCK BY FATHER DON FARNAN   WRITTEN BY FATHER DON FARNANAUGUST 29, 2022 SYNODALITY NOW! When I drive by Serenity Funeral Home on Bannister Road at Troost Avenue on my daily commute, I think of Frank Costanza from Seinfeld fame.  In one episode, Frank...

  UPON THIS ROCK BY FATHER DON FARNAN   WRITTEN BY FATHER DON FARNANAUGUST 13, 2022 BROKEN HEARTS I think it was G. K. Chesterton who once quipped that there should be a ninth Beatitude and it should read: “Blessed are the broken-hearted, for they provide a...

  UPON THIS ROCK BY FATHER DON FARNAN   WRITTEN BY FATHER DON FARNANAUGUST 1, 2022 HOUSING WISDOM Rockhurst University’s motto, Sapientia Aedificavit Sibi Donum, translates as “Wisdom has built herself a home.”  The plot of land between Troost Avenue and The...