Catholic Thought discussion

Manny and I have been thinking about what to read as a Christmas read this year. We are a little late to get the ball rolling, lol! At this point we are really looking at a Christmastide read, the days between Christmas and Epiphany. We've selected The Night Before Christmas by Nicolai Gogol. It is funny yet profound, and a perennial favorite in Russia.

The book is not very long, 48 pages, so I think we can start the discussion January 1st.

In the meantime I will post the rest of the Ratzinger bit by bit.

I just finished two Anton Chekov short stories. Nothing Christmas related but just masterful stories. I’m in the mood for more Russian literature!

I'm about ten pages in. There is a title of a person that baffles me. Does anyone know what a "Sorochintsy assessor" is? My edition has footnotes but nothing for that. I've never heard of it.

Ah, I just a AI search and it came up with this:

"The "Sorochintsy assessor" is a memorable, observant, and slightly comical minor character from Nikolai Gogol's famous story "The Night Before Christmas," known for noticing everything in the village of Sorochintsy, from piglet counts to pawned goods, making him a comical figure who'd catch even a flying witch if he were around."

Ok, so Sorochintsy is the town's name and the assessor is apparantly a character associated with the town. Maybe it would have become clear as one reads on. But good to share this.