Tyler Blanski wrote a fabulous and insightful article on fatherhood the other day on Catholic Exchange. It reminded me of my own father and one of his favorite sayings: “offer it up.” Whenever something traumatic happened in the lives of his ten children, like spraining an ankle during football practice or hearing something hurtful by […]
There is an old country graveyard near the town where I live. For years the small Clearwater Cemetery was all but forgotten and neglected. In the middle of that graveyard lies the forlorn grave of a young soldier who died six days before the end of the First World War. The decrepit fence surrounding the […]
In touring some underground caverns recently, the cave guide said that the exquisite formations all around us took tens of millions of years to form from billions of acidic water droplets which had entrained trillions of tiny particles of materials. Conditions above and beneath the surface had to be precisely correct, and changes in and […]
When I was young child growing up in the 70’s, I remember seeing greeting cards and cheesy home décor with the quote, “Love means never having to say you’re sorry,” an oft quoted line from the melodramatic film Love Story. It never made sense to me. If that is indeed true, I would tell myself, […]
Working with the ‘least’ among us in nursing homes Over the years, I have had some interesting and exciting professional experiences as an interviewer and a writer. But nothing quite compares to my time visiting people in nursing homes. I’ve lived in six states, visited a number of facilities, and my interest hasn’t waned. Sometimes […]
As a rebellious teenager, I thought that Catholics should stop wasting their money on expensive churches. We ought to sell them all and buy food for the poor, I argued. Funny thing. Jesus, who cared much for the poor, did not have this attitude. As an adolescent he yearned to spend time in Herod’s sumptuous […]
In high school science class I learned that water is the universal solvent. That is the extent of my scientific knowledge. In geography class I was taught that three quarters of the earth consists of water. And the water we drink today is the same water that the dinosaurs drank millions of years ago. I […]
Pope Francis continued his teaching on the nature of Church with this week’s General Audience. There were a few quotes and themes at the heart of this week’s message. Pope Francis stated early in the audience, “Now, in the power and grace of His Spirit, Christ does not fail to give rise to ministries, in […]
This week (November 2 – 8) is Vocations Awareness Week. Since I began my full-time work with Priests for Life over 20 years ago, one of the first things I became aware of was that many young people today are finding their vocation precisely because of the Church’s witness to the sanctity of life amidst […]
Four years ago, my husband became someone else almost overnight. We’d been married for more than a decade and I’d always known I’d gotten one of the good ones. My husband was naturally compassionate, attentive to me and our children, and easygoing about most things. Reprinted with permission from Catholic Sistas. But then it was […]
Confession, also known as The Sacrament of Reconciliation, can be a hard sell, even among Catholics who actively practice their faith. In the Introduction to The Light is On for You: The Life-Changing Power of Confession (The Word Among Us Press), Cardinal Donald Wuerl acknowledges that only “slightly more than 60 percent of practicing Catholics […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Ezekiel 47:1-2,8-9,12; Psalm 46:2-3,5-6,8-9; 1 Corinthians 3:9-11,16-17; John 2:13-22) The Importance of Supporting and Praying for Our Bishops Zeal for your house will consume me. (John 2:17) Imagine a church adorned with marble columns, bursting with colors, gold ceilings, marble floors, walls covered with New Testament scenes, […]
Life is more about getting up than it is about not falling. So my father commented once, long ago, when (of all things) we were watching figure skating. It wasn’t just any figure skating, though, it was the return of Scott Hamilton after his battle with cancer. For those too young to remember, Scott Hamilton […]
Christianity Today’s online magazine Parse recently posited that the rise of the automobile laid the groundwork for the modern megachurch. It’s a recommended read that gets to the crux of a problem in modern Christianity – a problem that cars only amplified: our self-centeredness. There are, of course, plenty of God-fearing Christians attending megachurches, but […]
When one considers what the most important part of the Liturgy of the Word is, you would think that the proclamation of that word would easily rank in the top slot. I don’t wish to tell my reader they are wrong, but I submit there is something else that is also of the highest importance. […]
I would imagine that no one ever wants to see a loved one walk away from the Church. This scenario plays out more often than naught with the people I speak to on a daily basis. A day doesn’t go by without encountering someone who is Catholic but not practicing. When I recently taught on […]
What does it mean to live generously? That is the question at the heart of Lisa Hendey’s new book, The Grace of Yes: Eight Virtues for Generous Living (Ave Maria Press, 2014). Hendey, founder of CatholicMom.com and well-known speaker, offers readers an intimate look at her own struggles as she attempts to follow God’s will […]
Dear Brittany Maynard, You don’t know me, and sadly, I don’t know you. I have something to tell you. Why should you care what another voice among millions is saying? Because I have good news. Like so many, your story has crashed into my world, just as cancer crashed into yours. As expected by your […]
“Though absent from our eyes, Christ our Head is bound to us by love. Since the whole Christ is Head and body, let us so listen to the voice of the Head that we may also hear the body speak.” -St Augustine Continuing his catechesis on the nature of the Church, Pope Francis took this […]
At age 16, I thought that aspiring to holiness was out of the question. If you really wanted to be holy, I thought, you had to be a priest, nun, or brother. And you had to spend your days doing “religious stuff” like praying, preaching, teaching catechism, or serving the poor. But I had developed […]
Last year on Reformation Day (October 31) one of my cousins mentioned the Protestant “holiday” on Facebook. It was a celebratory post. “Happy Reformation Day!” Reformation Day marks the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. It highlights the Protestant reformers who began new denominations rather than remaining within the Catholic Church. I mention it in this […]
I have witnessed the tears of many people. Some have been tears of joy for an answered prayer. Others have been tears of sorrow when mourning the death of a loved one who just died of cancer or unexpectedly. Some tears were shed when someone shared a personal story that called to mind painful memories, […]
“The rosary is for old ladies and funerals! The rosary is not for me. I’m a man!” Yes, I was one of those knuckleheads who felt I was way too cool, too macho for anything as quaint as the rosary. It took the Holy Spirit shaking me to my core during an ACTS retreat to […]
Throughout more than 30 years with chronic degenerative multiple sclerosis, I have spent long periods of time convalescing. It was in the solitude and stillness of my sickroom that God’s voice became increasingly evident. Is that a blessing? Yes. I have drawn closer to my Redeemer despite and even because of my illness and vulnerability. […]
