Quenching Thirst (Inspired by John 4:4-42) Absentmindedly She replaces the ladle. Weathered hands rebraid thick plaits More out of habit this time, than necessity. Eyes closed, she still sees his face And hears his rich, gentle voice. She chokes back a sob, Remembering he did not judge Or scold or chide her. He gave her […]
If you read most press accounts, the public in general, women in particular, are recoiling from the many initiatives “anti-abortion activists” have undertaken. But the latest polling data from Gallup demolishes that myth, noting in the process that there has been a huge turnaround in the self-identification of Independents Gallup’s Lydia Saad reported yesterday that […]
I have joked for years that MTV is destroying civilization as we know it. Then, the network gave us “Jersey Shore,” and proved my joke wasn’t funny, it was true. Now, I’m convinced the people at MTV actually sit around a conference table and ponder the question: How can we exploit and corrupt the innocence […]
HAWK! by Anthony Schefter Scout First Class David M. Halloway was a stoic. He never complained and he rarely cried, not about anything. But this hike was barely a morning old and he was already sick of it. He was ready to leave the Scouts anyway and didn’t see how this hike was going to […]
Unbelievable. Tonight, our youngest child will be confirmed – our last Mohican. This is the last “big” sacrament we’ll celebrate as Fenelon Clan. Of course, receiving the holy Eucharist is a major celebration every single time we receive Him, and receiving the sacrament of Penance should simply delight us each time we’re reconciled, but I […]
A Pearl in God’s Eyes My Purity and Chastity is a pearl in God’s eyes, Given me by my father and mother, It is a wonderful prize. I think and pray and wonder Of this beauty which is mine. A feeble step, a feeble fall, The little baby dropped his treasure. He is crying, and […]
In a coordinated defense of religious liberty, at 11 a.m. yesterday 43 Roman Catholic organizations filed a dozen lawsuits nationwide to strike down the HHS mandate. The plaintiffs include some of the most significant organs of the U.S. church, including the Archdioceses of New York, Washington, D.C., and St. Louis; the Dioceses of Dallas, Fort […]
And the angel said to her in reply, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. (Luke 1:35) When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled […]
The way Willie Bloomquist sees it, he’s living an impossible dream. Of all the players who try to make it to the major leagues, only a relative few actually get there. Bloomquist is one of those few, but he doesn’t attribute this to his own skills. The 34-year-old Port Orchard, Wash., native says he’s not […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 2:1-11; Psalm 104:1,24,29-31,34; 1 Corinthians 12:3-7,12-13; John 20:19-23) Pentecost, A Time to Say Yes to the Work of the Holy Spirit in Our Lives Scholars tell us that the first Pentecost took place during the Jewish Feast of Weeks. This was a festival at which the […]
“Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” — Gospel of St. John, 15:13 There are some men who sum up the character of a nation. One such man was Vincent Robert Capodanno. Capodanno represented what was best about America, and now those who remember him would […]
Like the Hulk, The Avengers, directed by the imaginative Joss Whedon, has smashed all previous weekend box-office records, hauling in over $200M in just three days. So what is it about these kinds of films that draws people to see them over and over? Part of it is the sheer spectacle of it all, some […]
As busy people with spouses, kids, jobs, responsibilities, we’re all bound to fall into a funk from time-to-time — a phase when we feel dejected, overwhelmed, ungrateful, unappreciated or just plain blah, sometimes for no good reason. So what can we do about it? Ride it out? Throw up our hands? Yell at our kids? […]
Newsweek magazine is so proud of Obama’s self-described “evolution” on the issue of same-sex marriage that it has anointed him “America’s First Gay President.” America’s voters, at least those in key swing states, seem much less impressed. As I told friends at the Canadian March for Life, which took place in Ottawa last week, Barry’s […]
That Thieving Spirit! Mark my words- the Holy Spirit is a sly one! When I began my search for it, quick as lightening it found me- And then it stole from me! My eyes, (Seeing shadows mostly, and hurting in light) Were fine by me- Those eyes were well trained In the art of despair […]
The Church has the charge for the “cura animarum” (the care of souls). Jesus commands His Apostles to go and preach unto all nations (Matthew 28:16-18). In the sixth century, Pope St. Gregory the Great wrote his much celebrated “Regula Pastoralis” (Rule for Pastors) that spoke about caring for souls in various states or conditions. […]
I gave them your word and the world hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world (John 17:14). Today we observe World Communications Day, because communication is important to the life of the Church. In fact, we ARE in the business of communications: evangelization is the […]
Chen Guangcheng landed with his wife and two small children in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday evening, marking the end of the forced-abortion opponent’s long fight for freedom from Chinese oppression. In remarks at New York University, where a fellowship had been offered to Chen as a means of leaving China, the self-taught lawyer expressed […]
Dear Anthony, My girlfriend and I are very serious and talk about marriage. But I’m a little concerned about how she accuses me of being too friendly with other women. I guess I should be happy that she cares so much for me that she would be jealous of other women. But I wish she […]
Aloof The irresponsive silence of the land, The irresponsive sounding of the sea, Speak both one message of one sense to me:– Aloof, aloof, we stand aloof, so stand Thou too aloof, bound with the flawless band Of inner solitude; we bind not thee; But who from thy self-chain shall set thee free? What heart […]
There is a dichotomy in this question or quest, if you will. “Fitting in” calls for a person to make a choice of accepting a set of ideals that belong to a certain group of people in the community. These set of ideals should match those of oneself to truly fit in. These ideals should […]
In 1960, the combined oral contraceptive pill was first approved for use in the United States. Seven years later, “the Pill” was featured on the cover of Time Magazine, illustrating its enormous societal impact[1]. Roughly two generations later, statistics from the United Nations show that, within more developed nations worldwide, just under 16% of “partnered” women […]
The Vatican called it a reform but it’s actually a “war against nuns,” an unprovoked “crackdown” on the dwindling ranks of America’s 55,000-plus religious sisters by a power-hungry pope and his ungrateful bishops. Rather than thanking the aging sisters for their years of service to the oppressed, the patriarchal Catholic power structure is punishing them […]
We took our kids to a petting zoo where the highlight of the visit was the alpaca grazing area. There were several families with us looking over the fence. Then my six-year-old son, noticing a soccer ball in the middle of the field exclaimed, “I didn’t know alpacas played soccer!” There were laughs all around. […]
