As I crossed the great divide of puberty, I formed a vivid image of God.. He was a grumpy old man on a throne with a frown on his face. Every time anyone tried to have a little fun, he’d shout “Thou shalt not!” But to really live and not just exist, you had to […]
As someone new to praying the liturgy of the hours, I never before fully understood the place of the psalms in the prayer of the Church. “In [Christ],” the Catechism says, “the psalms continue to teach us how to pray”, so much so that the Church calls the psalms a “school of prayer” (2587 and […]
Adam and Eve really did have it easy. They were so comfortable in their human skin. More to the point, they were comfortable in their human skin which had a spiritual soul. This did not seem odd or cause them any kind of dilemma, stress, or confusion. They were created to be perfectly at ease […]
If you will, you can keep the commandments, they will save you; if you trust in God, you too shall live; he has set before you fire and water to whichever you choose, stretch forth your hand. Before man are life and death, good and evil, whichever he chooses shall be given him. Immense is […]
Presented in cooperation with Greg Schlueter and JP2Journey.com: The JP2 Generation Tells Its Story, remembering World Youth Day 2002 and the impact of Pope John II. Part one, Fr. Rich Toohey It was September 2001. I was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Erie four days before the horror of 9/11. I was asked […]
It’s true. I do not use Facebook. Now before you jump to any conclusions, I am not Amish and no, I did not grow up in a cave. I do not use Facebook because, quite frankly, I ‘m not sure I should be using it. Like so many things of this world, Facebook is just […]
My father taught me one of the most amazing lessons I’ve ever learned about forgiveness. It happened when I was a young girl, about eight years of age or so. I was at home with my mother and two sisters just doing things around the house. Suddenly, the atmosphere changed, and there was a flurry […]
“[F]or dust thou art, and to dust thou shall return” (Gen. 3:19). We are food for worms, and yet our culture, our modernist worldview, pretends that nature can somehow be betrayed. We worship the appearance of youth while we are alive, and when those around us give in to inevitability, we hide the reality of […]
An Ice Cream Sundae. At 11:30 p.m. or so on Mardi Gras. My yearly custom, for many years, was to take a bowl of Whitey’s Ice Cream, cover it with Butterscotch and/or Carmamel and/or Chocolate Sauce, maybe throw on some peanuts, and enjoy my last indulgence before the start of Lent. Ice Cream. I was […]
In our family we observe a common Catholic tradition: whenever we hear a siren, we say a Hail Mary, “for whoever is in need and for the first responders”. Since we live just a few blocks from a fire station, we get lots of practice in this devotion. Which also affords our daughter Liz, now […]
While getting ready for a dance at the University of Detroit during a freshman college orientation weekend, I had a life changing experience. It was a moment of awakening that has stayed with me for over thirty years. The roommate I was assigned for the weekend was a tall, slim girl with short black hair. […]
The outlook for Christians in Pakistan is bleak according to the country’s Catholic leader, who described how Shahbaz Bhatti’s death has robbed minority groups of a “great leader” and left them feeling “oppressed, repressed and depressed.” Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha of Lahore said the murder of the Federal Minister for Minorities showed how extremist religious parties […]
Beloved Pope John Paul II, already acclaimed “the Great” by so many, shaped the faith of millions of Catholics for whom he was the face and mind of the Church all during their formative years. With his beatification nearing, we are journeying together to a very special Lent. In addition to the graces of any Lenten […]
Protestants say we’re saved by faith. Some Catholics say we’re saved by good works. But what does the Bible say? This Sunday’s readings are clear – it’s neither. And it’s both. At the very same time. First, let’s define our terms. When St. Paul says “works” don’t save us, he is really referring to two […]
Hear Gary Zimak on EWTN radio’s Son Rise Morning Show Tuesday, 3/8 at 6:45 a.m. and on Ave Maria/EWTN Catholic Connection Friday, 3/11 at 8:35 a.m. No matter how close we are to God, the season of Lent provides a great opportunity to grow closer to Him. One of the biggest mistakes that we can make is to not take advantage of […]
By now we all know that a new Roman Missal is on its way to use in our parishes. If you are like me, you want to know how and why things come about. So, consistant with this, I looked up the committees instrumental in the revising and establishment of our Roman Missals, past and present, here are my […]
A few months ago, an acquaintance told me she was in a RCIA program. I don’t call her a “friend” because I really do not know her quite well. I think she is a nice person who has the potential to be a good friend but my knowledge of her and her life is very […]
The Lenten season is full of discussion about sacrifice, what it means and how it connects you and me to the selflessness that is at the center of our commitment to Christ. Consider what Pope Benedict XVI said in his Lenten message this year about fasting and the other sacrifices we make for Lent: By […]
Visitors from other Christian groups to an Orthodox Divine Liturgy will often find some similarities to their own religious services along with some major differences. For example, visitors from other liturgical Churches will recognize the Epistle and Gospel readings, the Alleluia, and the Anaphora or Canon before the distribution of the Eucharist. One major difference, […]
She was just a wisp of a thing. She probably was around 20, but she looked like she was 13 years old. She had a beautiful newborn baby girl snuggled on her shoulder as she stood patiently at the back of the crowd. She reminded me of what I’d imagined our Blessed Mother to look […]
Apple. McIntosh. Golden Delicious. Johnny Red. My earliest memories of apples come from visits to Stone’s Apple Orchard in Hampton, Illinois. They were open year round, it seems, and whether in February or June, entering the apple barn where the lights were down low and there was a crispness in the air and the smell […]
In the ancient world, most peoples believed in a universe that had many gods. But even without the help of biblical revelation, Greek philosophers figured something out. There could only be one Supreme Being, only one almighty and omnipotent Ruler of all, only one God. In the twelfth chapter of Luke, Jesus asks a question. […]
I am kneeling in a place of absolute peace. Soft music plays in the background, telling everyone of God’s unfailing love. The pungent smell of incense hangs in the air. The lighting in the room is dim, except for a solitary spotlight. This spotlight illuminates the monstrance, which contains Jesus Christ in the form of […]
Just as all this was about to happen in Rome (see part one, part two), the head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department of External Relations, Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev, was engaged in an unprecedented week-long trip to the USA in early February Unprecedented because it involved meeting not only with other Russian Orthodox living in America, […]
