Deacon Michael Halbrook

Deacon Michael Halbrook

Faith, family, work, and life - all intertwined.

Permanent deacon of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois. Husband, father of four sons, builder of Catholic technology, and writer of essays, fiction, and homilies.

The Mother House in Chicago
Two Lamps ↗

The Mother House in Chicago

Two Lamps, Issue 28: Saints Frances Xavier Cabrini & Rose Philippine Duchesne, the mother house of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Chicago, an autumn evening in 1913

November Lessons
Faith & Life

November Lessons

On falling leaves, the four last things, and what I learned at a bedside.

Six Months In
Ad Alta ↗ Reflections

Six Months In

What leaving Adobe to do mission-based work for the Church has actually looked like, so far.

The Letter from Rome, 2023
The Lost Crown ↗

The Letter from Rome, 2023

What follows is a recovered email correspondence between Teodor Maren and Dr. Mara Leclerc of the Vatican Apostolic Archive, conducted between February and August of 2023.

Prague, 1942
The Lost Crown ↗

Prague, 1942

What follows is drawn from a set of handwritten notes found inside a chalice case in the possession of Teodor Maren at his death, and from a partial journal kept by Father Josef Novák between 1938 and 1942.

The Dissolution, 1540
The Lost Crown ↗

The Dissolution, 1540

What follows is reconstructed from three sources: a letter from Prior Edmund Holt of Rievaulx to an unknown recipient, dated October 1539; a probate inventory from the estate of Richard Askham, wool merchant of York, dated 1571; and a brief entry in the household accounts of the Askham family covering the years 1540 to 1544.