Author Archives: Bill Schmitt

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About Bill Schmitt

OnWord.net is the home for Bill Schmitt's blog and biographical information. This blog, initiated during Bill's nearly 14 years as a communications professional at Notre Dame, expresses Bill's opinions alone. Go to "About Bill Schmitt" and "I Link, Therefore I Am" to see samples of multimedia content I'm producing now and have produced during my journalism career and my marketing communications career. Like me at facebook.com/wgschmitt, follow me on Twitter @wschmitt, and meet "bill schmitt" on LinkedIn.

Love Thee, Notre Dame, and the Grace of “Yes”

Posted on November 16, 2014 by Bill Schmitt

Thanks to @LisaHendey, author of two great blogs A Good Measure and Catholic Mom.com, for her article that cited my two books with University of Notre Dame Press: Football Weekends at Notre Dame  and Words of Life: Celebrating 50 Years of the Hesburgh Library’s Message, … Continue reading →

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Joy to the Word — Not a misspelling, but an exhortation

Posted on September 7, 2014 by Bill Schmitt

Thanks to Notre Dame Magazine for inviting me to contribute to their “What I’m Reading” blog. You can see my response at http://magazine.nd.edu/news/50016-what-im-reading-the-joy-of-the-gospel-pope-francis/ Writing this blog post gave me a chance to meditate not only upon the joy that comes from getting to … Continue reading →

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Stephen Colbert, GK Chesterton, and Conversations of Hope

Posted on January 28, 2014 by Bill Schmitt

Here’s a shout-out to ACE’s own Patrick R. Manning for his cover story in the latest America magazine, noting that TV’s Stephen Colbert offers inspiration to catechists with his threefold approach: “delight, instruct, and persuade.” This connection between the ability … Continue reading →

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Now for a word from South Africa, via Popes John Paul and Francis

Posted on December 10, 2013 by Bill Schmitt

Thanks to Rocco Palmo and his “Whispers in the Loggia” blog for teaching me the word Ubuntu. Wikipedia defines Ubuntu as a South African word meaning human kindness. In tribute to South Africa’s Nelson Mandela, Palmo posted on Dec. 5 … Continue reading →

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This Whovian — or Whoosier? — Learned from the Doctors: The Present Isn’t Enough

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Bill Schmitt

The recent blockbuster episode of the brilliant BBC series “Doctor Who” got me thinking again about the danger of “presentism” in today’s world. Did you see the episode entitled “Day of the Doctor,” in which three different reincarnations of that … Continue reading →

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This Just In … EWTN News Nightly

Posted on September 4, 2013 by Bill Schmitt

The biggest news in Catholic news right now is the debut of “EWTN News Nightly.” Thanks to Deacon Greg Kandra’s blog, you can see the Sept. 3 premiere and enjoy intelligent commentary about the telecast. Thanks to Lisa Hendey’s blog, … Continue reading →

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Poetweets on a Notre Dame Theme

Posted on August 4, 2013 by Bill Schmitt

Have you heard of poetweets? They’re short bursts of verse that use 140 characters–the length of a tweet.  Similar to haiku being limited to 17 syllables. Thanks to the author of this Prezi description of poetweets.  This relatively new art … Continue reading →

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World Youth Day: “A Positive Outlook on Reality”

Posted on July 30, 2013 by Bill Schmitt

One of the wonderful commentaries Pope Francis offered during the World Youth Day events in Brazil last week was his prescription of three attitudes that would help today’s young people build “a more just, united, and fraternal world.” Those three … Continue reading →

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God’s in the details — and the patriotic songs

Posted on July 4, 2013 by Bill Schmitt

I was blessed to start out this 4th of July with Mass at St. Matthew’s Cathedral, a Mass celebrated by Bishop Kevin Rhoades to mark the end of the Fortnight for Freedom. Especially in light of the Bishop’s remarks about … Continue reading →

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Gateway Episodes: This Concept Opens Up Some Possibilities

Posted on June 28, 2013 by Bill Schmitt

Thank you, Abby Ohlheiser, whose post in the June 25 Slate introduced me to the concept of “gateway episodes.” Abby mused on how a TV series, perhaps a now-cancelled series that one always wanted to sample  and still can catch … Continue reading →

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