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 […]
God gives mothers whatever good they ask for their children. Why? Because they are humble. They are living signs of humility and only the humble are filled with God. Jesus also gifts mothers with a share of His sorrows and passion to be applied to the salvation of their children. “It makes me happy to suffer for you, […]
“You received Holy Communion this morning and that is well, but you must do more, make a general confession and offer your communion for the conversion of sinners.” These were the words the Queen of Heaven spoke in 1859 to a Belgian immigrant named Adele Brise in Champion, Wisconsin. In 1917 the children in Fatima […]
Jesus Christ didn’t save us with an idea, with an intellectual program, no. He saved us with his flesh, with the concreteness of the flesh.” -Pope Francis This quote from Pope Francis slipped across my screen as I was scrolling through my Facebook news feed. I didn’t slow down as I was looking for something […]
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 […]
A fellow writer recently asked somebody to write something positive about motherhood. She said “Some of us not-yet-moms are scared of motherhood because all we hear is that you’re miserable and debilitated for nine months, then have a day of the most excruciating pain ever, then you don’t sleep for 18 years and everybody’s throwing […]
“Abraham you called to me, I am ready, Lord, what do you want of me? Take your son, your only son, your joy above all things, you shall journey up the mountain to the place of which I speak, you shall lay him on the altar, you shall give him back to me.” I have […]
The topic for discussion at my local Theology on Tap recently was evangelization and Christ’s instructions to His Apostles to go out and spread the Good News: Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in […]
I would like to introduce you to an exciting new men’s prayer group based on the Gospel of Mark’s story of Four Men who brought their paralyzed friend to Jesus for healing. Through their faith they obtained their friends’ healing and the even greater miracle of the forgiveness of his sins. Members of this prayer […]
The king of love my shepherd is, whose goodness faileth never; I nothing lack if I am his, and he is mine forever. -From “The King of Love my Shepherd Is” by Henry Williams Baker Marriage is an image of Christ and His bride, the Church. It is a sanctuary for love, for the bringing […]
I’m really not one to talk about voluntary sacrifices I make — the whole “do not let your right hand know what your left hand is doing” thing. It’s something between me and God. But, I happened to casually mention to a friend that I was basically doing another Lent for 40 Days for Life, […]
Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of His Body, that is, the Church (Col 1:24). When I first read St. Paul’s words to the people of Colossae, I was stunned and I’m sure that I’m not alone. […]
