I remember the day I discovered the joy of playing with a prism and the power generated by a magnifying glass. I was sitting on the windowsill of our fifth grade classroom and chatting with friends. We were looking at Mrs. Grace’s plants and goofing around with the magnifying glasses and prisms. I was fascinated […]
“Self” Magazine is certainly a sign of the times. This is an age when it is socially acceptable to admit that life is all about me. But selfishness is nothing new. Ever since Eve bit into the apple, human beings have made the choice to dethrone God and put in His place the unholy trinity […]
Some gifts are a mystery to me, to the point that people blessed with those gifts inspire me. I’m thinking of two in particular: People who build houses and artists. They convince me to look at others in a whole new way. One of the men at our Saturday morning prayer group spent most of […]
Remember that scene from the movie QUO VADIS (okay, you don’t; the movie was released, after all, in 1951!) where two early Christians meet on the road? They don’t know each other and, in a time of persecution, they have to be circumspect around strangers. So, the first one draws an arc in the sand […]
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord’ . . . but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21) Jesus teaches that His Father’s will is accomplished through actions, not just words. It’s not sufficient to say, “I believe,” or “I’m sorry.” When our days here end, having […]
Youth symbolize vitality and a future – and the UN, often teetering on the brink of irrelevancy, is keen on inviting young people into its midst. But a recent forum for youth exposed a dangerous trend – and an opportunity for pro-lifers. The forum gathered opinions from youth in preparation for a high-level meeting of […]
A reflection on today’s Sacred Scripture: “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit” (Matthew 7:18). Weeks ago we noticed one of the large apple trees in our neighborhood hadn’t yet come into bud. Its bare form stood alone among all the other trees that had long since flowered and were well into full leaf. I remarked that it must […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 12:1-11; Psalm 34:2-9; Timothy 4:6-8,17-18; Matthew 16:13-19) Proclaiming the Word of God The Lord will rescue me from every evil threat and will bring me safe to his heavenly kingdom. (2 Timothy 4:18) Wait a minute! This passage sounds a lot like today’s psalm: “The angel […]
Dear God, You Can’t Be Serious (Liguori Publications, 2014) is the sequel to Patti Maguire Armstrong’s Dear God, I Don’t Get It, but one need not have read the first one to enjoy the second. While the first book focused on older brother Aaron, a sixth grader who had to move to a new state […]
It happened when I was in middle school. The Presbyterian Church held its annual General Assembly in Baltimore one year and Philadelphia the next. My father was selected to be a delegate from his presbytery, the first year as a seminary student and the second year as a member of the clergy. It was my […]
They say all politics is local, but this is easy to forget amidst the incessant frenzy of a 24-hour news cycle that tends to focus exclusively on national politics. For many people, particularly those residing in sprawling suburban bedroom communities or bustling urban centers, it is easy to overlook the local in favor of the […]
Western pressure on African countries to liberalize policies on homosexuality has had a boomerang effect, uniting Africans against it and resulting in what some see as a new non-aligned movement of countries. Last week the United Nations elected a Ugandan as president of the General Assembly over last-ditch efforts by activists who, along with the […]
Fr. Matt was our guest speaker at a recent Date Night, the purpose of which is to enrich marriages. We had an incredible turn out and as I sat there smiling to myself and thanking God, Fr. Matt spoke on some common communication challenges. A counselor had shared with him a baseball scenario that could […]
When the priest begins Mass in the Extraordinary Form, he does so by praying Psalm 42 (or 43, depending on your bible’s translation.) The priest asks for God to judge Him (and all present), and to distinguish his (and all of our) causes from that of the unjust. When we attempt to understand what this […]
An outstanding pro-life Facebook page entitled Big Abortion focuses on the positive aspects of the development of the individual from his creation onward. It contains facts about why celebrating a human being’s life is a positive, and shows that killing him is the ultimate cruelty. The fact is that Big Abortion is an industry that […]
Else but Melancholy? Stay abreast of the current events, Otherwise, they say, to all intents, You’re just a citizen in ignorance; To national progress, a hindrance. But what if this “progress” should devolve, Into fiendish ways that involve, Vice, sleaze and a spiritual squalor, Loathsome to any Christian scholar? Why do we go in quest […]
The Catholic Church teaches the doctrine of transubstantiation, namely, that in the Eucharist, the communion wafer and the altar wine are transformed and really become the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Have you ever met anyone who has found this Catholic doctrine to be a bit hard to take? If so, you shouldn’t be […]
In the great treasury of music, I keep finding myself coming back again and again to Beethoven. You may think it’s because he was one of the greatest composers who ever lived despite his deafness. That is true, everybody loves great music and everybody loves an over-comer. But there’s something more that keeps drawing me […]
After concluding his talks on the gifts of the Spirit, Pope Francis now takes up the subject of the Church, its identity and mission. He began by warmly welcoming everyone as his brothers and sisters. This was a fitting greeting since his address emphasized God’s desire to form a family of people through Fatherly love. […]
The Biblical story of Tobit’s marriage to Sarah, whose previous seven husbands had been slain by demons, has been cleverly reimagined in a new novel (released April 2014 by Ignatius Press) called Tobit’s Dog, by Michael N. Richard. The novel is set in the backwoods of Depression-era North Carolina. The plight of blacks in the […]
I was recently reading about an upcoming conference at the Vatican entitled “The Pastoral Project of Evangelii Gaudium” to implement the Holy Father’s new apostolic exhortation, “The Joy of the Gospel”. The keynote speaker is Jean Vanier, founder of L’Arche communities, a group of homes for the disabled where their gifts are cherished. For a […]
“We fear a civil war. If the various different opposing internal parties do not succeed in finding an agreement, then we must expect the worst. Another war would mean the end, especially for us Christians.” This was the message from Chaldean Auxiliary Bishop Saad Syroub of Baghdad, speaking to Catholic charity Aid to the Church […]
A 43 percent rise in doctor-prescribed suicides in Washington State in 2013 was motivated not by pain, but by feared loss of autonomy and “dignity,” according to the official state government report. Washington State’s annual report covering 2013 states that 91 percent reported to their health care provider concerns about loss of autonomy, 79 percent reported to […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion(Deuteronomy 8:2-3,14-16; Psalm 147:12-15,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; John 6:51-58) Remembering Who We are Receiving in the Eucharist Be careful not to forget the Lord. (Deuteronomy 8:11) The Israelites were about to enter the Promised Land, and Moses wanted to make sure that they would stay faithful to God […]
