“Pope Francis on Sunday will preside over a Mass in St. Peter’s Square at which an urn containing the relics [supposedly the bones of Peter] will be shown for public veneration. The urn is usually kept in the Apostolic Palace for private veneration by popes, but it will be publicly displayed for the first time to mark the end of the church’s ‘Year of Faith’” (Associated Press, November 18, 2013).

Grandmother Willa was a positive influence in my life. She was principled, yet understanding; helpful, but not overly demonstrative; instructional, but not confrontational. The stains on the kitchen ceiling of her small two-bedroom Cape Cod testified to her love of canning and food preparation for family dinners, and that she endeavored to provide for herself and others well into her senior years. She had many talents and many passions.

In the well-known biblical account of the prophet Jonah, God instructed His reluctant Israelite servant to deliver a warning to the city of Nineveh, an Assyrian stronghold. Assyria was traditionally a bitter enemy of Israel. Jonah unwisely attempted to shirk his duty and flee from his responsibility. To get away, he booked passage on a ship in Joppa (modern-day Jaffa) going to Tarshish, which some theories connect with an ancient port also called Tartessos in the region of what is now Spain, though other theories abound.