Anyone need a good book for teenage boys? That’s inspiring, short, and hilarious? If so, you’re in luck. Ignatius Press has just the thing: Humility Rules: Saint Benedict’s 12-Step Guide to Genuine Self-Esteem by Brother J. Augustine Wetta. Recently a friend of mine gave this book to me, and I read it in a day […]
“You did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled at their proper time” (Luke 1:20). Faith assures us that anything is possible with God, and The Catechism teaches us that, “God, who created everything also rules everything and can do everything. God’s power is loving, for He is our Father, and mysterious, for only faith […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading: Isaiah 49:1-6 Responsorial Psalm: 139:1-3, 13-15 2nd Reading: Acts 13:22-26 Gospel: Luke 1:57-66, 80 Being Filled with the Holy Spirit and the Joy of the Lord All were amazed. (Luke 1:63) What do you think is the most amazing thing about John the […]
Trust is an intrinsic part of the human psyche, though it’s resolve can sometimes seem almost irrational. It was trust in God that brought Columbus to discover the New World. The same could be said about the many pioneers who ventured out in wagons to cross the great prairies in the 19th century. In that […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading Ezekiel 17:22-24 Responsorial: Psalm 92:2-3, 13-168 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 5:6-10 Gospel: Mark 4:26-34 Without parables he did not speak to them. (Mark 4:34) Did you know that you are quirky? It’s true. The fact that you are taking time out to read […]
The children of their own accord made a little shrine in our trees the other day. (They affectionately call these trees, The Wildness.) They gathered lilacs and other flowers in bloom, made blue sashes with star badges, and used sticks for swords. They also made a little flag. It was all in honor of Mary, […]
Frequently, when I speak to groups about death and dying, people will share their own stories of loss. At a recent event, a woman came up to me with tears running down her face, to talk about her daughter who had died by suicide. She had been raised as a Catholic, with the idea that […]
Even as we see our government and our leaders try to solve our problems, it’s clear that we cannot rely on them to solve our spiritual problems. Instead, when we as a civilization open ourselves up to God’s love, he will pour a new anointing of His Spirit upon us. Our plan must be to […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading: Genesis 3:9-15 Responsorial: Psalm 130:1-8 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 4:13–5:1 Gospel: Mark 3:20-35 We are not discouraged. (2 Corinthians 4:16) If anybody had a right to be discouraged, it was St. Paul. During the course of his ministry, he was beaten, shipwrecked, betrayed, […]
It boils down to confession. Because when the confession lines grow short, sin prevails; first forgotten and then celebrated. Confession keeps us grounded in the truth, as we confront sin and root it out. Without it, we become blind to sin and begin to think and do stupid things. We knew that about Ireland, and […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading Exodus 24:3-8 2nd Reading: Hebrews 9:11-15 Responsorial: Psalm 116:12-13, 15-18 Gospel: Mark 14:12-16, 22-26 This is my body. (Mark 14:22) It’s a well-known saying: We are what we eat. But what happens when we take that saying and apply it to our spiritual […]
THE angel Gabriel, in the mystery of the Annunciation, informed the Mother of God that her cousin Elizabeth had miraculously conceived, and was then pregnant with a son who was to be the precursor of the Messias. The Blessed Virgin out of humility concealed the wonderful dignity to which she was raised by the incarnation […]
Pick up the paper or turn on the TV, and we hear of another mass shooting. It seems as if some Americans are steeped in rage, and we look on in horror. What can we do? How can we help? Our initial reaction may be to pray for those in mourning and hope that it never happens […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40 2nd Reading: Romans 8:14-17 Responsorial: Psalm 33:4-6, 9, 18-20, 22 Gospel: Matthew 28:16-20 Knowing and Experiencing More Deeply the Great Love and Mercy of the Trinity In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy […]
Susie Fulton, bombshell girlfriend during my graduate school days, had a phrase which perfectly summarizes Tom Wolfe’s early journalism and late novel-writing: “Those of you who think you know what’s going on are really beginning to annoy those of us who do.” TW broke through fakery, excuse-making and hero-worship. American letters has lost a keen […]
Promoting abortion is the biggest challenge in advertising today. A false narrative is a must lest women perceive the reality of abortion. Visuals of their handiwork are hidden at all cost. It is the pro-lifers that want show the world what abortion really looks like. They want the truth out. In Ireland right now, that […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading Acts 2:1-11 Responsorial: Psalm 104:1, 24, 29-31, 34 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13 Gospel: John 20:19-23 Pentecost, A Time to Say Yes to the Holy Spirit and Jesus’ Call for your Life Receive the Holy Spirit. (John 20:22) Imagine being one of […]
I was asked the other day if I suffer from insomnia? Uh, yes. From time-to-time anyway, and it’s terrible. I never used to have a problem sleeping. Anybody remember those college days of setting the alarm clock for 10am? And sleeping all the way through the night, until 10am? Yeah, that’s a little pathetic, but […]
In my work preparing engaged couples for marriage, I find myself pondering what might have been different for us, if my husband and I would have been required to take the same prep that is currently offered in the Diocese of Phoenix. While we were married in Phoenix over thirty-eight years ago, the marriage prep […]
Mothers make great sacrifices for their children, that is widely known. That they are often the gateway to sainthood perhaps less so, and yet, behind every great saint (to steal a phrase), is likely to be an attentive mother. Fr. Christy David Pathiala would probably agree. He speaks of his own mother with great reverence, […]
What can you give to the woman who makes the best meatloaf and taught you how to tie your shoes? Often, children feel that no gift is enough to thank the woman who loves them like no other, while for mother’s the humblest of gifts are treasured. Motherhood, when done with love, (yes, some have […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading Acts 1:1-11 2nd Reading: Ephesians 1:17-23 Responsorial: Psalm 47:2-3, 6-9 Gospel: Mark 16:15-20 The Ascension of Jesus Christ, A Day of Great Joy and Celebration This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven . . . (Acts 1:11) When we […]
In relation to boys, girls have always had a very short childhood, inversely proportional to the wealth of the family. Two thousand years ago in Palestine they were hardly off the breast before they were expected to conform to strict behavior patterns. Little girls grew in the knowledge that they were second class citizens, forever […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48 2nd Reading: 1 John 4:7-10 Responsorial: Psalm 98:1-4 Gospel: John 15:9-17 Allowing God, through the Holy Spirit, to Stretch the Way We Think and Act They were astounded. (Acts 10:45) Today, the Sacrament of Confirmation follows Baptism and Eucharist. […]
