This piece serves as a follow up from my previous article entitled, “What Wives Want Their Husbands to Know.” While these articles are in no way exhaustive, they are common stumbling blocks I encounter in my work in marriage ministry. Both in the preparation side and marriages in crisis. One young husband stated after reading […]
What gives me the right to presume to speak on behalf of the wives of humanity? Who am I anyway? Where are all the letters behind my name, my credentials, or reviews from my peers? What I simply propose here is based on my almost thirty-nine years of marriage, (“street cred”), and the fact that […]
The culture has been hard on men for decades, but many are rising up against that tide. It’s something that both men and women should get behind. God made us male and female to complement one another, so when men grow stronger, women and families do too. Here are some of my favorite examples below. […]
When I was a kid attending Catholic school, if someone was caught with gum, or candy, a typical response from a teacher who was usually a Dominican nun, would be: “Do you have enough for everyone?” If we had been clever enough to prepare ahead of time, pulling out enough gum or candy for the […]
Every person deserves dignity, especially to be recognized as equal creations of God, as we all are. Yet we are created individually and differently, which is a huge part of the challenge presented to us by Jesus in the Second Commandment — to Love our neighbors as ourselves. The only way we are able to […]
Shortly after I got married, a good priest gave me some sage advice: look at all your daily frustrations as a source of holiness. Later that day, my husband did something that irritated me, so I said to him through clenched teeth: “You are making me so holy right now.” Of course, this made us […]
A question that occasionally comes up when the topic of single Catholics is raised has to do with priorities. Some would say that the Church is too busy addressing the many moral evils in today’s society to be concerned with single people. This line of thinking, however, prevents the Church from seizing a great opportunity. Assisting […]
A preface to this article: I remember as a teenager how both the Internet and my hormones were exploding. I spent many a nights using dial up modems lusting after the latest digital pin-up. Front and center in my quest was the blond bombshell named Pamela Anderson. During the 90s, she was the crown jewel of all […]
The critical components for our Armor of Virtue are almost assembled. Faith first forged for us a shield. Hope next honed for us a helmet. Now charity – the third and final theological virtue – builds for us a breastplate. In medieval times, the breastplate served two functions for a knight. The first was bodily […]
Last week the inaugural column in this “Armor of Virtue” series aimed to awake the knight within us awaiting formation and to be sent forth on a saving mission. It presented a shield forged in the first theological virtue of faith. It was designed to serve as a first line of defense, to be held […]
“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.” – Mother Teresa “At the touch of love, everyone becomes a poet.” – Plato “For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart. It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul.” – Judy Garland The concept […]
The Middle Ages molded men to serve their lords and their ladies as soldiers sheathed in armor. Knighthood wasn’t just a title or a symbolic honor as it is today. It was a position of trust forged within the complex relationships of medieval kingdoms and culture, requiring equal parts of metal and mettle. When placed […]
Sex is easy. Obvious statement, so what’s the point? Birds do it. Beasts do it. Humans do it. There are those who prowl about the world pursuing sexual prey, consuming and discarding conquests like they were earning points in some sick game, attempting to satisfy a voracious carnal urge with little concern of consequence or […]
The most terrifying aspect of living out Catholic sexuality is that it requires us to unflinchingly kill an entire world of potentials. In this world of dreamers, it can be very difficult to commit oneself to a given way of life simply because it entails giving up all other ways of life. It can be […]
None of us is promised happiness in this life. All of us are guaranteed sorrow. Indeed, sorrow is the classroom where we often learn our most valuable lessons and through which we can climb ever closer to heaven – where we are promised happiness. Perhaps that’s why I am so drawn to praying the Sorrowful Mysteries […]
A boy falls and skins his knees. A boy wrestles in the living room and bonks his head on the coffee table. A boy tries to field a ground ball at shortstop, only to take a bad hop that bloodies his nose, or gets plowed by a much bigger boy on the football field. “Boys […]
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) has become a whipping boy for the advocates of the latest round of the sexual revolution. The Human Rights Campaign has gathered a bunch of business owners to bully the governor in an attempt to get him to back down. “Your bigotry is bad for business,” is their mantra. […]
My comment was met with a blank stare, a look of confusion. Fortunately, it only lasted a few awkward seconds. I was visiting my nurse practitioner for a nagging abdominal pain. Having concluded that I should have a CT scan (a detailed, in-depth x-ray) she had asked me if there was any chance I might […]
Marital satisfaction tends to take a dip once that first baby comes home from the hospital (or out of the bathtub, birthing center, etc.). This shouldn’t be surprising to anyone. Let’s face it. Kids, particularly newborns, are difficult. Anyone who says otherwise is either lying, or a grandparent. But you can maintain a happy marriage […]
Some years ago I proudly came out of the “monogamy closet.” (See comments here.) Now, after over 42-plus years, my monogamy condition is unabated, in all its forms. I don’t “self identify” as a monogamist. I am a monogamist. Major mass media and Hollywood have had no effect on my ailment, and more than […]
Lent comes early this year. February 10th is Ash Wednesday! That’s just three weeks away, folks. So instead of waiting until the last minute and grasping at your old standbys (giving up chocolate or God forbid, coffee), why not plan ahead using our convenient list of resources below? Make this your most spiritually fruitful Lent ever! Reprinted with […]
Jesus’ invitation to discipleship comes with a warning: “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me” (Mk 8:34). He made this statement shortly after Peter confessed him to be the Messiah, and he told his disciples what that role entails. The suffering involved in denying oneself and […]
It was Thanksgiving and my then-girlfriend was meeting my family for the first time. Much to my surprise, all five of my siblings were able to be there, and we enjoyed – or so I thought – our usual holiday dinner with the typical excited-aggressive talking that Italians tend to do. Later that evening, I […]
As the concept of gender grows ever more fluid (you can pick any one of 58 gender options on Facebook), it’s worth asking why God created humans as male and female. Bacteria have no gender and reproduce mostly by dividing their cells. Some species of fish are sequentially hermaphroditic, changing genders throughout their lifetime. Angels, […]
