When I signed up for RCIA classes at our parish in September 1996, I failed to read the fine print. Graduation, otherwise known as Confirmation, would be at the Easter Vigil. Since my daughter’s school had spring break the week before and the week after Easter, we had planned a dream vacation and booked non-refundable […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Jeremiah 38:4-6,8-10; Psalm 40:2-4,18; Hebrews 12:1-4; Luke 12:49-53) Running and Finishing Well the Race of Life Persevere in running the race.” (Hebrews 12:1) Usain Bolt is a Jamaican sprinter who holds the record as the fastest person ever. Nicknamed the “Lightning Bolt,” he has won many Olympic […]
In the early 1990s, my sister lived in New Zealand and worked for a traveling science roadshow. We talked on the phone rarely. It was too expensive, and the voice delay on overseas phone calls was really frustrating. My sister began sending postcards to keep us current on her exciting adventure. One postcard stands out […]
In my previous article, I discussed marriage, Holy Matrimony, catechesis, and the call of Catholic couples to live their marriage as a sacrament and a sign of contradiction. A part of that witness is in taking up our own crosses daily by making the small and sometimes even the big sacrifices for our spouses (and our children […]
Humiliations (Haikus) Chisel cutting stone Sculpter’s blow carves, molds, and lights Forms stones into hearts Some are well deserved Some are most beneficial Illumination Humiliations Tear a wound in tender hearts Beware, lest you kill… I don’t regret mine Reject Humiliations? They straighten the spine! Never be the cause~ Reject humiliating! Choose kindness and love. […]
For the past many months, the refrain of singer Paul Simon’s song, “Slip Slidin’ Away” has kept rolling around in my head, repeating itself over and over again. For awhile there, it really did seem as though things were slip slidin’ away for Fenelon Clan. And, so, even though I didn’t initially like the song […]
With the school year starting soon, here’s a sampling of questions from recent emails: Q. Our school district is revamping the curriculum to comply with the new Common Core State Standards, but we don’t know what that will entail. Will my kids be behind since they have not had this curriculum from the beginning of […]
Sometimes you see the storm coming from miles away. The sky darkens long in advance, the thunder roars loudly from a distance, the wind whips up and turns cool. You expect those storms and can plan around them a little, or at least plan for them. I don’t mind a good storm. You can enjoy […]
When I was 18 years old, about nine years ago, two years before I entered the Church, I was laying in my bed late at night. Over the side of my bed I was holding a Rosary. At this point in my life I was not yet Catholic. Intellectually I wanted to become Catholic – […]
Leyna Gonzalez is a precious little girl – a 20 month old bundle of energy and joy. Against all odds, she is with us today. While in utero, an ultrasound was performed at seventeen weeks that revealed she had a rare tumor protruding from her mouth — an oral teratoma — making her survival highly […]
The dreaded phrase, “I think it would be better if we were just friends,” has been feared by teenagers for decades. The fear that, after professing love for a girl, she’ll look at him and whip out this infamous line has kept many a boy from even suggesting that next step. And though much could […]
Today is the Feast of the Assumption in the Roman Catholic Church, as well as the Dormition of the Theotokos (the falling asleep of the Mother of God) in the Eastern Catholic and Orthodox Churches. Much of the talk about the feast today will be centered on the theology and meaning of Mary’s bodily assumption […]
Dear Facebook, You keep asking me: “where did you go to College?” and you are making suggestions based on where some of my friends studied. If you must know, I went to the Université du Sud Toulon-Var, France (it was called Université de Toulon et du Var or UTV twenty years ago). I don’t give […]
When Christ was made flesh in this world through the Incarnation that meant that no facet of human existence was to be set apart from God’s redeeming grace. This message is needed now more than ever, particularly in the West, in the area of economics and finance. A Catholic outlook on economics necessarily does not […]
You’ve got to take whatever life throws at you. And if you’re a parent, you probably have to wipe it up, too — especially when it comes to craft time. Few words can strike more fear in the hearts of parents with young toddlers than “craft time.” When the paint is flying and the glue […]
In my little corner of the world (Alberta, Canada) there is an issue raging about government cutbacks to support services for people with severe disabilities. Disabled Albertans feel threatened — and with good reason. Many of the support services that will be cut provide personal daily care that will directly impact the ability of disabled people to function, […]
St. Monica is always on the near horizon for Catholic mothers, because the heartfelt prayers she offered on behalf of her wayward son, Augustine, were instrumental in his conversion. I must confess, though, that my admiration was limited by my narrow understanding of her life. I saw her less as a well-rounded Christian and more […]
The Common Core State Standards are raising tremendous controversy as politicians, educators, and parents analyze their accuracy and effectiveness; however, any analysis of the content of the Common Core State Standards necessarily ignores the main objection to these, or any federal standards, imposed on American schools. The fact is that any federally imposed standard violates […]
Among all kinds of cultural, political, and interfaith dialogues, the one between Christianity and Islam is arguably the most interesting. Many of my friends from the Western world regard Islam as some kind of a mysterious, exotic, almost “unknowable” religion. However, some scholars, such as Hillaire Belloc, view Islam not as a totally separate religion, […]
The National Day of Remembrance (AbortionMemorials.com) is an effort of prayer and education focused on the approximately thirty locations throughout the United States in which the bodies of children killed by abortion are buried. By telling the stories of these burials and having memorial services at each of these sites, the public is brought to […]
Measuring everyone against an iron law turns them into criminals.
Everyone has worries and something to worry about. How will I make the payments? What do they think about me? Will I do well on my test? Will my son get a good job? And for those dating: “Will I find the right person?” These are normal and healthy thoughts. They are worries that acknowledge, […]
In a message for Brazil’s National family Week, Pope Francis said it is the task of parents to pass on reverence for human life at all stages to their children. “In a particular way, faced with the culture of waste, that relativizes the value of human life,” the pope said, “parents are called to pass […]
