My mind has been calmed by, among other things, a bookmark and a simple prayer. I’m writing these thoughts late in the evening Thursday, October 15. For the Catholic Church, this has been the Feast Day of St. Teresa of Avila. Among those in the Discalced Carmelite order – be they priests/friars, nuns or lay […]
Key to seeing the Holy Father’s message this week is reading again the opening passage of Matthew 18, read in St. Peter’s Square before the general audience. Distracted by the question of “greatness before God,” the apostles ask Jesus who would be the greatest. Jesus answers the question in a kind of rebuke, saying that […]
Today is the Feast of St. Luke the evangelist. Luke was a native of Antioch and unlike the other New Testament writers, was not a Jew, but a Greek. When we look for Luke in the Scriptures, we first come across his Gospel, but from a historical perspective, his first mention is not in the […]
It was time to make their move. Usually it was Peter who took the initiative, but now it was their turn. They cleared their throats and asked the master for the best seats in the house, the places of honor right next to the throne. Of course, in this conversation, recounted in Sunday’s gospel, John […]
Why do we fear coming to God? Why does turning to God come only once we have no where else to turn in our trials? Rather than God being first, we turn instead to friends, family, spouses, culture, society, and only when other sources are exhausted do we turn to Christ in prayer. Obviously, these […]
The Hail Mary is such a beautiful prayer in honor of our Blessed Mother, one every Catholic knows. Sarah Reinhard, a convert to the faith, describes the Hail Mary as her “blankie prayer . . . Just as my children cling to their worn-soft, faded blankies, so I cling to my Blessed Mother’s skirt through […]
My life as a Catholic father has taken some turns I could never have predicted. My divorce, annulment, and remarriage in the last six years changed the straight, traditional path that I always envisioned. However, one thing has been constant and unwavering—my faith in God and in Jesus Christ. In all I have done in […]
Greetings Kevin, In your most recent letter responding to my questions on traditionalists and pastoral responsibility, you rightly point out that for every case of a “traditional” priest behaving autocratically, we can find just as many instances of liberal autocrats looking to destroy traditional church architecture and practice. Indeed, countless priests and bishops have disrupted […]
What is the best social network for the New Evangelization? Is it Facebook or Twitter? Or perhaps Instagram and Pinterest better reflect our modern lives? Or are you a Snapchat aficionado? Forget it, Pope Francis just rebooted this conversation. At his Wednesday General Audience on October 7, 2015, he revealed his social network of choice […]
Suddenly, quite surprisingly, I find myself deep in despair. Despair for my family and friends. Despair for my parish and my Catholic Church. Despair for myself, my work, my apostolate and my health, for my community and my country and my fellow human beings, for my prayer life and my faith and the souls of […]
The Miraculous Closing of the Last Abortion Facility in Corpus Christ, Texas For many years the pro-life community of Corpus Christi, Texas and surrounding areas prayed in front of the last remaining abortion business left in the town. There were countless novenas and Masses offered along with visitations of a relic from the tilma of […]
A new article over at CNS News paints a disturbing picture of the state of religious liberty across the globe. Citing religious persecution as “a leading social justice crisis of our time,” the article outlines the horrific actions being perpetrated against Christians in the Middle East and Africa, and America’s less than robust response to […]
When I was about middle school age, I participated in a life chain with my mom. We lined up shoulder-to-shoulder with hundreds of other pro-life people along a busy stretch of road in my hometown. We held up pro-life signs and prayed. I don’t remember much about the day, except where we were standing, and […]
The date that Pope Francis chose to begin the second phase of the Synod on the Family could hardly have been a coincidence. When the Synod opened on October 4, the Church celebrated the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi. And even more dramatically, the readings for the day celebrated marriage — the marriage of […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading Wisdom 7:7-11 2nd Reading: Hebrews 4:12-13 Responsorial: Psalm 90:12-17 Gospel: Mark 10: 17-30 Being Good and Generous Stewards of Our Money How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! (Mark 10:23) Can a rich person go […]
Requesting anonymity, Catholic sources in Nepal have told the international Catholic charity, Aid to the Church in Need, about growing fears within the country’s small Christian population for their future safety in Nepal. In the early hours of Sept. 14, 2015, three Protestant churches were bombed in eastern Nepal where the Christian population is most […]
When I was growing up, my immature self believed that the family rosary was something that had to be endured. Through no fault of my parents, the nightly ritual was anything but idyllic. My siblings and I were called into our parents’ bedroom where we knelt facing the crucifix. My older brother and I would […]
Every month, as part of our formation with the Secular Carmelites order in St. Louis, the formation director gives my group a reading assignment and asks that we each write a two or three page reflection. The September assignment was Part Four of the Catechism of the Catholic Church – a compendium of all my […]
Pope Francis’s Wednesday General Audience on September 30 focused on his apostolic visit to Cuba and the United States. It was refreshing to hear the pope’s personal reflections on his visit, rather than the opinions of the media. The pope reminded the faithful he had specifically timed his visit to coincided with the 8th World Meeting of […]
Fraternal correction is defined as the admonishing of one’s neighbor with the purpose of reforming him, or, if possible, preventing his sinful indulgence in the first place. The very idea of this makes America 2015 ™ cringe, because even to most Christians, those who are responsible for fraternally correcting each other, the concept of evaluating the […]
The Beatles wrote a song that was the sensation of 1967, “All you need is love.” This the same point made a few years earlier by an ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Gadium et Spes 24, Vatican II’s Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, says this: God is Trinity, a communion of […]
In Pope Francis’ recent meeting with Kim Davis, the Holy Father’s expression of gratitude for Kim’s courage has dismayed liberal Americans. The LA Times editorial board felt it sent a “deeply disappointing message.” In his press conference on the plane home to Rome, Pope Francis seemed to affirm Kim Davis’ conscientious objector status, notwithstanding her […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion Mass Readings: 1st Reading Genesis 2:18-24 2nd Reading: Hebrews 2:9-11 Responsorial: Psalm 128:1-6 Gospel: Mark 10:2-16 Experiencing the Healing, Transforming Power of God What God has joined together, no human being must separate. (Mark 10:9) Today’s readings could not be more appropriate! This morning, Pope Francis will […]
All week my enjoyment of the exuberant visit of Pope Francis was marred by arguments from faithful Catholics close to me who were angry at what he did or did not say or do. Accusations of socialism, moral weakness and just plain wanting to be liked were flying. I begged them to wait and see […]
