Roswell Press announced the availability of "Parish the Thought, An Inspirational Memoir of Growing up Catholic in the 1960s." This memoir takes a nostalgic step back to school days of the 1960s.
Stories profiled include a beautiful mini-skirted blonde teacher who introduced all the 5th-grade boys to the forbidden land of lust before she was fired in 1968 for protesting the Vietnam War; the glory days on the parish basketball team and an opposing player dying on the court; a band of 8th-grade bullies who terrorized a nun and swirlied a defenseless boy; and the author's first love and how she broke his heart.
"This book profiles my experience growing up Catholic, but it is a shared experience for millions of Catholic Baby boomers across the country," said Ruane, who recounts his days at St. Bede the Venerable Church in Chicago.
Author John Bernard Ruane shares the evolution of his faith beginning with his entry into a Catholic grammar school, making his First Holy Communion, Confirmation and serving as an altar boy. He relates tales of the good and bad teachers, as well as the priests and nuns who affected the lives of so many impressionable young Catholics
As an altar boy, Ruane details his experience eating hosts and drinking wine before it was consecrated; forgetting his Latin prayers at the foot of the altar; serving early mass for a drunken flatulent priest with overwhelming bad breath; the embarrassment of ringing the bells at the wrong time; serving for a strict and spiteful pastor who built a magnificent church and parish, but could never inspire the Christian spirit; and the entrance of a heaven- sent guitar playing priest who represented the future of a reinvigorated Catholic Church after Vatican II.
Good and bad times shared by a blue-collar, middle-class family are recounted, including the experience of attending boring Sunday masses of the early 1960s; growing up in a large family with sibling rivalries; a fire that nearly destroyed their home; his mother's battle with cancer and father's early departure.
"There are many Catholics like myself who were good devout parishioners, but something terrible may have occurred in their lives, which resulted in their loss of faith in God and the Church," Ruane said, referring to the time he stepped away from his Catholic beliefs. "My four children and the shared responsibility of raising them correctly brought me back and I am thankful every day for that blessing. I hope my story can help others who have lost their faith reconsider their decision."
"Parish the Thought" received a recommendation from the Archdiocese of Chicago.
"John Bernard Ruane writes about a truly memorable parish, St. Bede's in the Archdiocese of Chicago," said Francis Cardinal George, Archbishop of Chicago. "His witty but moving recall of his years growing up is a marvelous tribute to his mother and father and to the parish itself."
"Parish the Thought" was designed by John Vieceli of Vieceli Design Company in West Dundee, Ill., and edited by Ken Paxson, who grew up in the '60s in a parish on Chicago's North Shore. The book was printed by CS Graphics and is available through local bookstores or by going directly through the Web site at: www.parishthethought.com.
To give back directly to the institution, a Catholic grammar school fund is being established to donate a percentage of each book sold through the Web site to Catholic grammar schools. Roswell Press also is offering parishes across the country the opportunity to sell the book in fundraising campaigns, receiving 25 percent of the proceeds for each book sold.
