Catholic. Pastoral. Trusted.
The month of October is one of my favorite times of the year. I love the colors, cooler weather, and the hustle and bustle of fall festivals and chili cook-offs. Though I’ve never had much affinity for Halloween’s secular festivities—especially the gory décor that accompanies it—I do have an attic...
“Any success I have…is due to the Holy Spirit.” Q. How did you discover your vocation? A. My dad attended the Franciscan minor seminary for the first two years of high school. He and the friars discerned that the priesthood was not for him at the end of the second...
Features 10 The Grace of Grandparenting: This rite of passage can deliver spiritual epiphanies and a barrel of fun, Kathy Coffey 16 New Bridges of Faith: A school day and a summer in the life of a seminarian reveal hope for Catholics crossing into the future, ...
His Mother inspired him to serve Q. How did you discover your vocation? A. God called me to diaconal ministry via four persons placed in my path: My mother, Maria Nguyễn Thị Được, who raised my siblings and me as Catholics on her own after my father’s passing when she...
I have enjoyed your magazine for over twenty years. In several issues this year, an artist/author by the name of francisca was featured: “The World on a Cross (March, at right), “Agony in the Garden” (April), and “Joseph: A Quiet Presence” (May-June 2022). Her work is powerful and beautiful. I...
I recently experienced one of the greatest joys of motherhood thus far: being present—completely and fully present— for my eldest daughter’s big day! Her husband is loyal, hard-working, and unfeigned; he loves her unreservedly. What more could a mother ask for? I knew he was committed when he readily accepted...
Features 10 Listening “The highest form of love.”—Paul Tillich, philosopher, Bonnie LeMelle Abadie 16 Christ Lives in the Mundane: To develop your devotion to Christ alone, put our Lord in all your tasks, Jim Still-Pepper 20 Profiles in Service “Prayer Is Our Consent to God’s Presence in Us.” “I’m both...
I am sorry to hear that one of my favorite writers, Jim Auer, had contracted COVID-19 (“Long-hauling: An Inside View,” March 2022). Please extend to him my prayerful wishes for a steady and full recovery. His story of his experience with the virus is very insightful and informative and reveals...
Several months ago, my husband had both knees replaced. The after-surgery care and commitment were more challenging than either of us could have imagined. I likened it to bringing home a newborn from the hospital. Constant attention was required; the tiniest detail made a substantial difference. I quickly learned to...
“PRAYER IS OUR CONSENT TO GOD’S PRESENCE IN US.” Q. How did you discover your vocation? A. My pursuit of my vocation to the diaconate began in 2014 when I received a letter saying a deacon class was scheduled, and I was suggested as a possible candidate. I laughed and...
Features 9 Poem: So Many Simple Wishes…Hopes…Prayers, Michael T. Best 10 A Whirlwind of Care and Hope: An inside look at the cosmos of wounded kids at children’s hospitals with a chaplain who was there, Fr. Denis Ryan, CsSr 18 Meditation: The Joyful Noise of Faith and Music: Our virtuoso Creator...
Just when I don’t think I have time to read Liguorian with all of my other reading material…it stays on the top of my list. You have such great articles. In the February 2022 edition, I especially enjoyed “Love Is For Giving” and seeing our very special deacon, Jerry Stoverink...
This year has flown by! Summer begins in June, the halfway mark of our publishing year, and we need to call out to you, our readers. Last year, we initiated the first Liguorian Readers’ Choice Awards, and we’d like to continue the tradition. We understand life is busy, so we’re...
“I receive more than I…will ever be able to give.” Q. How did you discover your vocation? A. For as long as I can remember, I felt that God was calling me to service within the Church. At age twenty-two I responded to the vocation of marriage by marrying Debbie,...
Father Stu Cast and production Mark Wahlberg: Fr. Stuart Long Mel Gibson: Bill Long, Stu’s father Jacki Weaver: Kathleen Long, Stu’s mother Teresa Ruiz: Young Stu’s girlfriend Director: Rosalind Ross (debut) Production: Columbia Pictures Distribution: Sony Pictures Release Date: April 15, 2022 “Don’t pray for an easy life. Pray...
Features 9 Movie Review: Father Stu: Mark Wahlberg, Mel Gibson star in a film about the power of redemption, Elizabeth A. Herzing-Gebhart 10 Awaken to a Life in Christ: Vatican II called laity to “the fullness of Christian life”; laypeople now play essential roles in the Church, Bonnie Lemelle Abadie...
A variation on that old adage, “You are what you eat,” is a line I heard on a recent podcast: “You are what you think.” English philosopher James Allen wrote this: “As a man thinks, so he is; as he continues to think, so he remains.” Perhaps this truth resonated so...
Christ “frees us from the prison of our shame” Q. How did you discover your vocation? A. How did a young boy born to Buddhist parents on the island of Borneo end up being a Catholic deacon for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston? This is the story of how God showed...
The “Faith Hits Home” column “Time to Clean Up!” (October 2021) exhorts us to take care of our planet as follows: “Reduce! Reuse! Recycle! Repeat!” and tells us some ways of doing so, but the part about recycling leaves out some important information. One of the problems with plastic is...
The eleventh day of March marks two full years since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global pandemic. I am stunned by this reality. Still. And what’s more shocking, in my opinion, is that we, as a nation, don’t have a better handle on the situation. Near the end...