About The Author

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A Noble Snake; tradition, mystery, danger, and virtue all in one

I have always been an odd person; introverted, isolated, thoughtful about some things, oblivious of others. Sometimes it’s been great fun; sometimes it’s been very painful. But in any case, the result has been that I’m somewhat set apart. I don’t follow the ordinary ‘script’ or accept the authority of general opinion. Instead, I’ve spent my life seeking for real, solid principles and ideas to live by; deep roots to stand on and glories to strive for. I’ve mostly found these in Christ, in philosophy, in history, and in fiction.

Fiction, while not the greatest of my interests, is the one nearest to my heart. Stories of all kinds are my delight, whether old or new, high or low, frothy as foam or deep as the abyss. My greatest ambition is to create the kind of stories that I’ve loved; to give to others what others have given to me, and to show beauty, nobility, and truth to those who yearn for them.

Currently, I live in southeast Michigan, where I work on my books and try to scrape together a living as a professional writer for various sites around the web, including The Federalist, The Everyman, Catholic Match, and Aleteia.

So…What’s with the Snakes?

I like snakes. I relate to snakes.

Snakes are unique, independent, solitary creatures. They stand apart from the other animals of the world, and for the most part they just want to be left alone, yet they are so dangerous when provoked that some of the most powerful creatures on Earth fear them.

Now, you might think that snakes are an odd mascot for a self-professed Catholic: aren’t they images of the devil?

Well, yes; sometimes. But remember, the snake was the first miracle God performed at the start of the Exodus: Aaron’s staff turned into a serpent before Pharaoh and his court and devoured the staves of the high priests as a sign of God’s superiority over the Egyptian gods.

The serpent spoke for the Devil in the Garden, but it spoke for God before the throne of kings.

11 thoughts on “About The Author”

  1. David: I enjoyed your piece (which has apparently gone ‘Net- wide!) about the value, or lack of, your college education. You mentioned your frustration at submitting countless job applications, with no employment to show for the effort.

    I just want to share some advice with you… take it or leave it, but it was MY experience, and therefore, it may be valuable to you as well.

    I have a degree, and I have experience in my field. However, for a while, I found myself unemployed, and seeking work. I submitted job application after job application after job application… HUNDREDS of those tedious forms, filled out, sent in, submitted, mailed, e-mailed, hand- delivered, whatever. Yet, out of hundreds, I got responses from approximately… zero percent of them. None. Not a single one.

    Now, one thing that I had always done was to fill out the ENTIRE application… including the “optional” section that asks about race/ ethnic background. In order to show that I was a team player, and not hiding anything, I dutifully completed that section, announcing to my potential employers that I am a Caucasian (and a MALE, at that!).

    One day, however, I had an epiphany: What if being a white person was working against me, in this world of political correctness, and “equal opportunity ” (which, of course, means that hiring must often be based upon race, and not qualifications (yep… they call that “equal opportunity…” disgusting irony!)).

    So, after that thought, I stopped completing that optional part of the application forms… I left it blank, on all subsequent application forms that I completed.

    After six months, and hundreds of fruitless applications, THIS changed the tide. Within ONE WEEK, I was faced with the dilemma of having to choose from THREE different job offers! Once I had stopped announcing my race, my phone started ringing off the wall… I was scheduled for interviews, and had offers from THREE different employers within a single week.

    It’s a funny world we live in. You may see my message as racist, but it is simply an observation of reality. Anecdotal, perhaps… but it changed MY view on how hiring managers choose who gets called in for interviews!

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  2. Just stumbled upon your article in The Federalist (link on Yahoo?)

    You are fond of books in addition to snakes, right? I know librarians who are extroverted, but others who are not at all. Have you ever considered an MLS?

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  3. Hi, David (the introverted). Yes, I will echo the others’ remarks. The Avengers’ article was interesting and astute on your part. It certainly does hark back to Malthus. In a broader perspective, what does everyone think of the Left’s advocating of not having children (for example, GINKs -Green Inclinations no kids)?

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  4. Enjoyed your piece on why you remain Catholic. If you are interested in ecumenical dialogue between the four branches of the ancient unified Church – Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria and Assyria – you might check out the Society of St. John Chrysostom. We are a lay society composed of members of the four branches of the Church working to lay the groundwork among believers as our patriarchs continue working to restore communion among the Catholic, Orthodox, Coptic, and Assyrian Church of the East – the four Churches that share a liturgical, sacramental history and apostolic succession, as well as the same priesthood.

    As one Antiochian Orthodox priest put it at a presentation last year, “It is not the Bible that gave us the Church; it is the Church that gave us the Bible!”

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    • Thank you for your comment, and I’m glad you enjoyed the article! That quote you provided sums things up very nicely.

      I’m happy to hear about the Society of St. John Chrysostom: I’ll have to look into it when I get the chance.

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      • The nearest chapter to you of the Society is in Youngstown, Ohio. I belong to the California chapter. But we are always hoping to start new chapters around the country!

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  6. One last thought (I keep forgetting that in WordPress my return key posts my comments instead of providing a carriage return): While many Protestants accuse Catholics and Orthodox of worshiping statues or icons of saints, it is at least equally true that many Protestant Churches come awfully close to worshiping the Bible rather than God. The Church existed for 150 years before the Bible was fully assembled, and it wasn’t until Gutenberg’s press that single-volume Bibles even existed. Prior to that, most parishes had only partial collections of all the books of the Bible, as the handwritten scrolls were prohibitively expensive. The early Church – which many Protestants claim to be rebuilding – would not recognize the concept of basing all knowledge of God and His Son on the Bible – by the first Century, the modern liturgies were already in place, and the sacraments were at the heart of Christian life until the Reformation.

    Which is not to say that Rome was without blame – much of what Luther rebelled against needed rebelling against. It’s just tragic that so much divine glory was thrown aside in the effort to counter human weakness and sin.

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  7. Your comments about much of Protestantism are on target but somehow you have lumped Luther and Lutheranism in that group. If you read the Lutheran Confessions you discover an adamant defense of the Real Presence without resorting to a philosophical defense (Transubstantiation) and one that is not Consubstantiation, a high view of the Word (the living voice of Christ speaking to us, a high Christology, a deep reverence for the Blessed Virgin Mary, eucharistic adoration within the mass, private confession, baptismal regeneration, a high view of ordination (though without a required division of the pastoral office into essentially different offices of bishop, priest, and deacon even though there is deep respect for a division of responsibility), a sung liturgy (the historic mass in English though without the sacrificial language of the Roman Canon), and a host of other things. Now I am the first to admit that Lutherans are often their own worst enemies when it comes to uniform practice (but Rome is hardly much better) though it is impossible to lump Lutherans in with Methodists, Baptists, Pentecostals, and Evangelicals. There is respect for Luther but his voice is not the deciding voice among Lutherans. The catholic principle of the Word that endures forever and the doctrine and practice that are faithful and consistent over time and place is what our Confessions (better term is Symbols) have to say about who we are and what we confess and teach.

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    • Thank you, Reverend, and I appreciate your response.

      I am aware of the matters you brought up; as with the Orthodox and Anglican communions, I didn’t want to get bogged down dealing with each one individually. As I was responding to a query from a specifically evangelical / non-sacramental Protestant point of view, I directed my response in that direction, mentioning that my reply doesn’t account for all denominations, but declining to spend time in this specific essay addressing them out of a wish to avoid it becoming too technical and complicated. But I understand your objection and will see about making such distinctions clearer if I tackle this subject again.

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