On August 31 in 2009, I – then a staff writer for the Tampa Bay Times – followed a Capuchin friar from the chapel at Most Holy Redeemer Catholic Church in Tampa to his desk in his office next door. Fr. John Aurilia, then Most Holy Redeemer’s pastor, agreed to let me interview him for the paper. I […]
If you’re of a certain age, you’ll recognize the title from an old folk hymn; we sang it repeatedly at Folk Mass in the 70’s and early 80’s. While the song itself is no longer popular, the message behind it is timeless. I was contacted to see an inpatient at one of our busiest hospitals. […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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. […]
“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 […]
“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 […]
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 […]
He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothersor your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, […]
March 14, 2013, Thursday — To Mary Today Pope Francis, on the first day after his election, did four remarkable things, and did not do a fifth. 1. Mary. At about 8 a.m., he slipped out of the Vatican in a single, unmarked black car — a Volkswagen, not a Mercedes — without an escort, and […]
Pope Francis in his initial remarks following his papal election led those gathered at the Vatican and those watching on television or online, and listening via radio in a prayer for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, asking the Lord to bless him and Our Lady to protect him. The prayers he led were traditional prayers, the […]
It was a nice sunny day in Buenos Aires, but a little cold for the season since it is still summer here down under. I told many friends the night before that I was expecting the Pope to be elected on the 13th since that day of the month was chosen by Our Blessed Mother […]
Like the rest of the world, I sat stunned by the revelation that our new Holy Father was almost completely unknown. We didn’t recognize the name; we scrambled for reference points; we watched transfixed as an older man was brought out on the loggia to meet his spiritual children. He also looked somewhat stunned, standing […]
If there is one thing about the Holy Spirit, he loves to throw a curveball. When white smoke appeared, Fox News’ Megyn Kelly and some wannabe pundit (whose name escapes me) were spending their time talking about how we were going to get a pope who was younger to help appeal to the masses. Or […]
At 7:08 pm Rome time, white smoke began billowing from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel indicating that the 115 cardinal electors of the Catholic Church have chosen a new Pope. The new Pope succeeds Benedict XVI, who resigned the papacy February 28. This election comes on the fifth ballot since the cardinals were first […]
Today is an historic day in the life of the Church and the world; all eyes are on Rome, and in a particular way on a little chimney fixed atop the most famous chapel in the world. Today, or tomorrow, or perhaps the next day, a new shepherd of the one billion plus Catholics scattered […]
“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 […]
“I hope we get a nice pope,” a good Catholic woman told me soon after Benedict XVI announced his resignation. “I don’t care whether he’s nice or not,” I replied. “I just hope he’s strong.” Actually, I’d be glad if the next pope were nice, with a winning smile and a friendly manner. But vastly […]
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 […]
Comments agitating for “women in the priesthood” are found throughout the media, voiced largely by outsiders to the Catholic Church, either non-Catholics or those who have willingly distanced themselves from the Church, so when I read this headline – “Exclusive: Women deserve bigger role in Church, says key cardinal” — my visceral reaction was negative. […]
As I make my way through Lent, I like to periodically stop and assess how I’m doing, and re-orientate myself toward my Lenten goal. This year, I’m feeling a bit scattered, and although I’ve been doing a pretty good job at keeping my Lenten resolutions, I don’t feel as though I have a really good […]
I had a friend who first heard of the Divine Mercy Message just in time to celebrate the Feast in 2011. Within a year she was dead at the age of 55. She was blessed to learn of the Feast of Divine Mercy when she did but how many others will not. Over and over I hear […]
