You know the song: Lean on me, when you’re not strong And I’ll be your friend I’ll help you carry on For it won’t be long ‘Til I’m gonna need Somebody to lean on Now: who wrote it? Don’t worry if you can’t remember. The songwriter himself said: “Nobody knows who I am. Sometimes if […]
If you are under 30, you might not remember what a treat it used to be to get your daily mail. We actually got letters from people. A long distance phone call was expensive, so people still wrote to one another. And when you got a letter from someone special, you sat down, studied the […]
A non-Catholic acquaintance was visiting my home recently. On seeing one of the Sacred Heart pictures in the house, she commented that that one of her older relatives was an Italian Catholic and liked those “Sacred Heart pictures too, but really, I think they are pretty morbid.” “Oh, my dear,” I thought, “it would take hours….” […]
Jesus said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer”… And He took bread, and when He had given thanks He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My Body which is given for you.” And likewise the cup after supper, saying, “This cup which […]
The media is abuzz with news about humanity’s numbers. Sometime during the latter part of this year or early next year — the exact date is still a little fuzzy — there will be, for the first time in history, 7 billion people alive on the planet at the same time. Left-wing pundits are already […]
What has been the essence of Pope Benedict XVI’s first six years, since his election on April 19, 2005, six years ago? What has been the pontificate’s chief characteristic? If one thinks of the pontificate as a whole, it is clear that the center of Benedict’s papacy is teaching. This pontificate is the pontificate of […]
Every April 22 is Earth Day. As one who studies Soviet Russia, I can’t help notice that the day coincides with the birthday of Vladimir Lenin. The inaugural Earth Day occurred April 22, 1970, no less than Lenin’s birth centennial. This is most ironic. Lenin is a decaying symbol of central planning, which, regrettably, is […]
Strange as it may seem at first, I find the key to the sanctity of Pope John Paul II in the closing words of an American novel published in 1988 — a book the Pope most likely never read. In brief, the heart of John Paul’s practice of “heroic charity” resides in the fact that […]
In the course of the publication of my articles on Latin and the Catholic Church’s memory and identity (part one, part two, part three, part four), commentator “Michael” posed the question, “Can Catholics figure out, by Natural Law alone, the ‘goodness’ or ‘badness’ of some writing?” He also made the claim that, “…in removing the […]
For years, I guarded the kids’ Easter baskets like the soldiers outside of Christ’s tomb. I’d monitor them vigilantly – if I could have rolled a stone in front of them, I would have. I wanted the children to make the contents last and to really appreciate the treats inside rather than just wolfing them […]
What is the common good? The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains: “By common good is to be understood “the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily”. The common good concerns the life of all. It calls for prudence […]
With Easter just a few days away you might already be pulling out your Easter baskets, locating last year’s egg coloring packets, and making all sorts of candy purchases at the store. Markets will be jam packed with eggs and families everywhere will have fun both coloring and eating the decorated delights! We thought it […]
Have you ever wondered why you aren’t more joyful? I have. I think as a Christian I should be filled with joy, and yet at times I struggle with sadness. Often it is because I can’t seem to balance all the issues I am dealing with. Adam and Eve, before the Fall, had no problem […]
In the days leading up to the eleventh-hour budget deal reached last Friday, the Liberal Left was out in frenzied force, gnashing their teeth in opposition to GOP efforts to end public funding for Planned Parenthood. Democrats invoked their tried-and-true class warfare rhetoric, insisting that Republican opposition to the organization stems not from opposition to […]
If then you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ your life appears, then you too will appear […]
According to a 1991 Book of the Month Club / Library of Congress survey that asked what book had most influenced their lives, the two top picks by respondents were the Bible and Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged. Coincidentally, this is a big week for both Christians and Randians. The former are celebrating the resurrection of Jesus […]
Holy Week can never be the same for me. Not after seeing the Shroud of Turin last year. It’s been nearly a year since the Shroud was placed on public display (for just the 18th time in its history) in Turin, Italy. Never did I imagine I would be among the over two million pilgrims […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 10:34, 37-43; Psalm 118:1-216-17,22-23; Colossians 3:1-4 or 1 Corinthians 5:6-8; John 20:1-9) Seeing Ourselves as Jesus Sees Us Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb (John 20:3). On this great feast of the Resurrection, let’s take a look at the first […]
Professor Rebecca Vitz Cherico has edited eleven stories of former atheists who received the gift of faith and converted to the Catholic Church. These men and women tell their faith stories about how they came to believe in Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church. Some of these people started out as nominal Christians, but over […]
At this year’s Easter Vigil, I get to celebrate my 17th birthday as a Catholic Christian. Seventeen years ago I officially began my faith journey as a Catholic Christian, with the blessing of Cardinal Mahoney and my faith community at Holy Family Catholic Church in South Pasadena, California. So every year at this time, I […]
When participating in online forums, message boards, and blogs, please watch what you say. Social media is great for exchanging information. Sometimes criticism is a legitimate part of business. But please try to be diplomatic and temper whatever criticism you may have for another person or company. In fact, it’s best to leave off names […]
Dear God, I don’t get it! is the name of my children’s book and it’s also the message I’ve heard through the years when bad things happen to good people. Whenever the weight of the cross presses upon us, we tend to feel somewhat betrayed. Why me Lord? I don’t get it! I pray and […]
You’ve heard of, “Do it Yourselfers”? Well I’m from a family of, “Fix it Yourselfers.” Every home project became not just a teachable moment but prime daddy-children bonding time. When I moved out on my own, my trousseau consisted not of family linens but a socket wrench set and basic Craftsman tools. So last week, […]
Dressed in blue, gray and white uniforms, the children of St. Raphael Academy lined the long dark table in the hearing room. A row of microphones separated them from the two benches of smiling state legislators above. The students wanted their state to issue a resolution urging President Obama to “adopt in its entirety” the […]
