My mom and I went out to brunch with a number of older folks we see at daily Mass. Towards the end of our outing, the matter of payment came up. It was then that Jim, a new acquaintance, found out that Margaret had paid for everyone’s meals.
Even if I have what I deem a “successful” Advent or Lent, I don’t want to stop there. I want to keep growing in my spiritual life throughout the rest of the year. But how?
I’ve been musing on Joseph and how significant his presence is. It seems as if the whole point of Joseph’s life is just to be present to Jesus and Mary. Miracles, words of wisdom, grand gestures? Nope. Just be present wholeheartedly to God and those around you. That’s enough.
What are you afraid of? What is the thing in your life that makes you so afraid that you aren’t happy, the family drama that you worry about all the time, or the world issue that seems apocalyptic in magnitude?
A friend was thanking me for praying for him when he said something most striking. He remarked on how we ask people to pray for us, but forget to thank them later on.
What a profound thought. We say thank you to someone who’s done us some favor, and…
I was recently reflecting on the Presentation and Simeon’s surprising enthusiasm at meeting Jesus. He’d waited so long and patiently for the Messiah, and what did he see?
In school, children are taught that the first Thanksgiving took place when Native Americans brought food to Puritan settlers. No one really thinks about the idea of giving thanks in a Catholic context. Since we celebrate Thanksgiving every year, it is important
It would be nice if I could hit a “Pause” button on life right now. I’m in such a pleasant situation, and have been for many months. Oh sure, I have my struggles, but they seem small compared to past ones. Meantime…
When the Catholic Church uses a word like “celibacy,” the world’s reaction is immediately hostile. A lot of the time, the first word people think of is “restrictive.” The world sees celibacy as a ridiculous imposition that the Church puts upon some of her members to exercise excessive control over their lives.
Have you ever thought about why Catholics make the Sign of the Cross so often? Too many times, we do it sloppily. We rush through the movement, perhaps not touching the correct points (forehead, chest, left and right shoulders), as we mumble the Trinitarian formula.
Catholics are a blessed lot. United in our faith, we can go to Confession with any priest. Nevertheless, it’s helpful to have a regular confessor. But we shouldn’t pick just anyone. After all, we’re fighting a spiritual battle. A discerning confessor will…
As Catholics, we know that each person is called to do God “some definite service”. What’s the role of the elderly and homebound, then? If they cannot actively partake in parish life, what can they do? As it turns out, quite a lot.
If you’re like a lot of Catholics, you know that the Bible is important for our faith. But where do you start? What passages should you be looking at? How should you read through certain books as opposed to others?
Too often, we put up a half-hearted struggle. Oh, we might look quite good on the outside, but are we really making progress? Or are we just going through it all out of a sense of routine?
Anyone who makes a serious effort to engage in prayer will almost certainly find themselves struggling with distractions. Sometimes distractions come from outside ourselves (e.g., a ringing cell phone or some chatty fellow parishioners). Other times, our minds are restless, or we’re assaulted by interior temptations.