Eleventh Station Good Friday “My friends, you are my closest ones. You alone I can trust. You are my closest companions, James, here, you have some dust Stuck to your shirt, There, cleaned off the dirt. My three friends, Peter, James, and John, Are closer to me than the rising sun. I tell you this, […]
The key thing that Pope Francis did yesterday was to greet Patriarch Bartholomew I, ecumenical patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church, based in Constantinople, as “my brother Andrew.” Now, Andrew was the brother of Simon Peter, the first Bishop of Rome. They were fishermen together on the Sea of Galilee, 2,000 years ago. So Pope […]
Just one day after USAID released a progress report on development reform, a US and UK funded AIDS prevention ad was pulled for being offensive and immoral for its promotion of extramarital affairs. While Christian and Muslim religious leaders called on the Communications Commission of Kenya to remove the ad from airwaves, it was a […]
One of my passions is Gregorian Chant and since we are in the heart of Lent, it is a good time to look at a chant piece proper to the season: The Kyrie in the Sundays of Advent & Lent (Kyrie in Dominicis Adventus et Quadragesimae): Kyrie XVII. Though there are a few variations of […]
There is good news in North Dakota this week as the legislature there has passed two bills: one outlawing gender-selective and eugenic abortions rooted in genetic anomalies, and the other outlawing abortion once a heartbeat is detectable. Get the N.Y. Times story here. This news comes hot on the heels of Arizona’s banning abortions at […]
I want to reflect upon the election of our new Vicar of Christ, Francis from a view of application to our own lives. What is the raison d’être of a person being a witness, a living testimony? Is it to cause admiration, or is it primarily to inspire others to emulate him or her for […]
As the mother of two lively boys, athletic boys, theater-loving boys, exploring boys, immersed-in-everything boys, I am forever seeking. Forever balancing. Forever juggling. Forever discerning. Activity versus stillness. Sound versus silence. Society versus solitude. I still, now for fleeting moments, still, have a measure of control over the feeling, the tenor, the rhythm of my […]
Clara Lejeune Gaymard has a “servant of God” as a father: Jerome Lejeune, the French geneticist who discovered the cause of Down syndrome. Lejeune, who died in 1994 at age 67, was outspoken against legal abortion. He was named the first president of the Pontifical Academy for Life shortly before his death by Pope John […]
On Sunday, March 17th, 2013, Pope Francis delivered the first Angelus address of his pontificate. Given that he spoke before and after a Marian prayer, the Angelus, one should not be surprised that Our Lady was invoked in some way. He shared three pertinent things regarding Mary. 1. Pope Francis relayed the story of an […]
The far left has never been shy about venerating its heroes.
In addition to sharing in Christ’s priesthood in baptism, the Catechism also tells us that we share in Christ’s prophetic office. The purpose of a Prophet (and hence Christ’s Office of Prophet) is something that is frequently misunderstood within Christianity today. The average answer will be that a prophet is essentially a divine fortune teller […]
There have been some remarkable occurrences in the Catholic Church in recent days. And while numerous articles have been written about them, a couple of stunning realities occur to me based on the identity and invaluable worth of a single human being. These events have affirmed once again that God is in charge of the […]
Yesterday a new pontificate officially began. The essential message in the homily given by Pope Francis to open his pontificate draws on the work and image of St. Joseph, spouse of Mary, head of the Holy Family. And that message is to “protect.” This message is important at a time when the figure of the […]
Today is the first day of spring because it is the day of the vernal (spring) equinox. Okay, just a quick review of your high school astronomy. In summer and winter we have solstices — the summer solstice is the longest day of the year and the winter solstice is the shortest day of the year. […]
This is a reflection I wrote after viewing Spiritual Growth in Tough Times which centers around the healing process. Sister Joyce Rupp discusses the process of healing with the analogy of the seasons. We all want to live in the spring and summers of our lives but we have to live through the difficulties of […]
Television is discovering the Bible makes for good viewing. In addition to The History Channel’s airing an epic 5-part Bible series, the second season of The American Bible Challenge game show begins this Thursday, March 21 at 9 pm EST on GNS. Hosted by Jeff Foxworthy, this fast-paced, one-hour game show pits Bible loving groups […]
“You have put into my heart more joy than they have in abundance of corn and new wine.” –Psalm 4:7 I pray this psalm once a week for night prayer and each time it strikes my heart in a profound way. I am not quite sure I identify with the joy that come from new wine […]
Abortionist Kermit Gosnell, who ran the “House of Horrors” abortion clinic in West Philadelphia that was shut down after an FBI raid in 2010, faced the jury for the first time Monday in a case with high stakes: Gosnell faces the possibility of the death sentence if found guilty. Gosnell, 72, is facing capital murder […]
“As they continued their journey he entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left […]
In the 16th Chapter of the Gospel of St. Luke there is the parable of Lazarus who, hungry and covered with sores, begged for food at the gate of the house of a rich man. Lazarus “longed to eat the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table,” and “even the dogs came and licked […]
Mary and Joseph’s marriage didn’t exactly get off to an easy start. They were engaged and Joseph had promised not to “defile” Mary, because she was a consecrated virgin. He was really only marrying her because, in that day and age, there was no security in being a single woman. And then she turned up […]
On February 17, 2013 — the First Sunday of Lent — I was enrolled in the Rite of Election to come into full communion with the Catholic Church. It was not a decision I entered into lightly; after all, as a Protestant minister, this decision amounts to essentially walking away from my career up to […]
