We've been Spreading the Good News for more than 100 Years.
In 1860, Grace Bedell wrote to Abraham Lincoln after seeing a portrait of the clean-shaven presidential nominee, encouraging him to grow a beard. “All the ladies like whiskers,” the eleven-year-old from New York informed him, “and they would tease their husbands to vote for you and then you would be...
Rewards and heartaches—but more successes than you can count—mark the school days of immigrant students and a devoted faculty and staff at St. Frances Cabrini Academy in St. Louis It’s 7:15 in the morning and my first-graders have begun to arrive. Some go directly to the cafeteria, where breakfast is...
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. “My grandmother subscribed to Liguorian for decades.” “My parents always had a copy of Liguorian in our home when I was growing up.” Did your loved ones introduce you to the Liguorian magazine? Honor their memory...
Timothy Cardinal Dolan, archbishop of New York, is one of the most recognizable leaders of the Catholic Church in the United States. Known for his easygoing manner, welcoming strangers as if they were lifelong friends, and his exceptional memory for people’s names and the details of their lives, he is less intimidating than a person in his position might be.
It’s treacherous to live in Honduras, migrating can be deadly, so care is vital for all who remain in this Central American country I had spent time in Honduras as part of my Jesuit formation, and I loved the people, but…live with them? Of course, I started looking for loopholes!...
A tour of memories reveals our Lord to one of his guides Gregory J. Rohde Genesis tells us that God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. Have you ever wondered what God did on the eighth day? God walked in a garden. The apple doesn’t...
Are you ever afraid? As a child, I was plagued by nightmares. One night, I woke trembling to see a dark shape hovering at the back of my bed. I was terrified. But then I felt God stand behind me. He raised strong arms and wrapped me in his wings....
Many people—particularly Jews—believe this rather paradoxical expression: “The remedy precedes the injury.” The Hebrew הקדמת תרופה למכה literally translates to “get in front of it while you still can.” What does this mean and how does it relate to the seasons of Advent and Christmas? On the twenty-fifth of December,...
When we think of humility, what comes to mind? Meekness, lowliness, selflessness? With so much focus on pride, the road to humility is not in clear view. However, one could say we are entering the season of humility with the coming of Advent and Christmas. The Blessed Virgin Mary became...
“If any of you cry at my funeral, I’ll never speak to you again.” —Stan Laurel Sign of the Times? St. Liborius Church, a large Gothic Revival structure, opened in St. Louis in 1889. Its significance led it to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979....
His son-in-law drove. His daughter sat in the front passenger seat. He sat in the back seat behind her. His wife was next to him. “Good thing Brent is driving,” he teased his daughter. “I remember times riding with you. In my state I can’t afford to take any unnecessary...
Many Happy Returns Miserly Ebenezer sent everyone in his family this (free) email message: “To the thirty of you who received best-selling novels from me as Christmas gifts: It may interest you to know that they are all due back at the library next Friday!”
“Remember to breathe, María. Deep, slow breaths,” she emphasized. Within the span of one week, I was reminded about the importance of breathing three different times by three completely unrelated sources: my spiritual director, the counselor Michael and I were meeting with, and my Chinese acupuncture doctor. Sometimes God goes...
My father was in the US Army. As children, he sent my sisters, brother, and me off to school each morning with a “call and response” chant reminiscent of boot camp. “What’s the key to good grades?” he would shout. We would call back, “Participation!” I carry that “key” with...
The wildly popular blessing of animals has put the feast of St. Francis of Assisi on a par with Ash Wednesday, Palm Sunday, and the St. Blaise blessing of throats. Some might even consider missing the October 4th blessing as worthy of confession, penance, and absolution. Truly, there is no...
Estrangement by a defiant daughter puts the strength of hope to the test. It was late afternoon, and Hattie knew Michael would arrive soon. He and his friend, Dave, had delivered the few furniture pieces she would need at her small apartment at Comfort Care Lodge. Hattie sighed as she...
I enjoy shopping for gifts. However, I wouldn’t say I like buying any readily available, reasonably priced gift or a standard item on every gift list, like a pen, book, or a popular CD. I prefer to take my time, looking for something I believe the recipient would need or...
School Daze On the first day of school, a new second-grade student entered the classroom and handed the teacher a note that read: “Dear Teacher, the opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his exasperated parents. Thank you in advance for your patience.” To read more, subscribe...
Remember when we were learning how to drive and how enthusiastically we prepared for the exams we had to pass in order to obtain a license? The road test was nerve-racking, to be sure. But before that, the written examination meant studying a book of rules and regulations that all...
I was recently pondering in quiet prayer time—and struggling with—the words on loss and grief from Thomas à Kempis’ Imitation of Christ: “If you can be still and suffer awhile, you shall without doubt see the help of God come in your need.” A short time later, I heard the...
I suspect I am not alone in associating September with attack. Even after twenty-two years, 9/11 is burned in my mind as a slow-motion unraveling of a horror-filled day. But the recollection always ends at our candlelit church, filled all night with people at prayer. We got a bitter taste...
Modesty means to refrain from bragging, and it carries other definitions of value. “Today I will speak about the virtue of modesty,” a sophomore announced to his classmates from the podium during a public-speaking class at a Catholic college. Some of his peers looked quizzical, as if they had never...
Life stories flowed as dad turned the pages of a Leather-bound treasure; then it was her turn.
Liguorian magazine collaborates with third-party advertisers in each issue. We value the contributions of advertisers who have partnered with us in the May-June 2023 edition of Liguorian. Ignatius Press Journey Health and Lifestyle The Redemptorists of the Denver Province Liguori Publications Download a PDF to see ads from our Featured...
To say “no” is instinctual, self-determining, and self-actualizing. To say “no” is to protest, and it is as natural as eating, sleeping, and breathing. It’s how we defend ourselves, survive, and thrive. Take Descartes’, “I think, therefore I am” and adapt it based on what we have all seen from...
My reflection is based on a portion of John’s Gospel. Mary, the sorrowful mother, stands beneath the cross of her Son as the dying Jesus calls to her: “Woman!” Of course, this is not the first time that Scripture quotes him speaking to his mother. When the wine runs out...