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…
Are you ready for your death? So many things in the world attract us and take our attention away from the fact that we were made for eternity. Beginning with Halloween at the end of October and all throughout November, the Church remembers in her prayers in a special way all those who have died.
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.
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?
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.
With the arrival of September, we’re ready to resume our twice weekly posting schedule with a series on cultivating a deeper prayer life. Readers offered some great ideas for articles in this series. Some suggested topics include…