Catholic. Pastoral. Trusted.
Written by Virgil Tipton Buried in a musty cardboard box—under a stack of letters, postcards, books, and old bank statements—I found a photo created by a little miracle of timing. My siblings and I believe it may show our parents’ first touch. My mother told us a story years ago...
Catholics began helping right after the shooting and continue to serve with Jesus’ word as their guide. Within hours of the shooting on that hot Saturday afternoon in August, Sr. Cathy Doherty, SSND, understood the magnitude of the death of Michael Brown. A shooting death, any death, yields an aftermath...
Pete Fountain’s face, one of the most recognizable in music, normally glows with a smile, or the corona of one. Not so in the days after Hurricane Katrina. His New Orleans’s home flooded after the levees broke, and his West Indies–style plantation home in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, was swept...
Written by Fr. Joe Maier, CSsR “To our neighbors and friends: How arrogant we are to dare tell your stories. But humbly we ask your pardon and forgiveness if we have goofed and not told the story properly or showed any disrespect in any way.”— FR. JOE MAIER, CSSR Editor’s...
I’m the captain of a small boat that’s being buffeted by a hurricane. The only other passengers on board are my two terrified children huddled below deck. I grip the lifeline tightly and fight against the waves that try to sweep me overboard. I’m tempted to give in and let...
I have been blessed to have visited many countries: Canada, Mexico, China, Thailand, Germany, and Italy to name a few. My travels have allowed me to experience wonderful and variant cultures. I’ve found that all of humanity yearns for God. And while each person may express his or her need for God in a different...
Jesus’ ministry was devoted to embracing all of humanity, and—plainly and clearly—he charged us to do the same: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:31). He didn’t make it easy. In reaching out to the pariahs of his day—sinners, tax collectors, the divorced, Samaritans—he taught that our neighbors...
The Epiphany is the perfect time for a closer look at the Magi and their gifts Cologne’s magnificent cathedral stands on a rise overlooking the Rhine. As is true of so many Catholic churches, the cathedral’s architect designed it in the shape of a cross. On the church roof, at...
Written by Fr. Thomas Nairn, OFM, PhD The experience of serious illness and dying is often ambiguous, even for Catholics. We know that Christians are called to face the reality of death and dying with the hope and confidence that our faith brings. We hear in the preface of the...
Written by Dianne Bergand, CSA Angel of God, my guardian dear, To whom God’s love commits me here, Ever this day be at my side, To light and guard, rule and guide. Amen. Who didn’t recite this prayer as a child? Or what Catholic-schooled student wasn’t told to make room on her or...
Managing Editor Elizabeth Herzing interviews Fr. Matthew Allman, CSsR, about the ministry at the National Shrine of St. John Neumann. Q. What is the history of St. John Neumann? A. Saint John Neumann, a Bohemian missionary born in 1811, came to the United States in 1836 seeking to serve the...
“By waiting and by calm you shall be saved, in quiet and in trust shall be your strength.” —Isaiah 30:15 I can’t even figure out what you’re asking in this problem! Where do I start?” moans the chemistry student in my office. Her overstuffed binder perches perilously on the corner of...
Fifty years ago, on November 21, 1964, the Second Vatican Council issued a decree that began with the words highlighted on the next page. Unitatis Redintegratio (“the restoration of unity” or the Decree on Ecumenism) was not the first document issued by the Church calling for unity among Christians, but...
September 2014 Jesus tells his disciples they are not to impress people by their authority but by their willingness to put themselves at the service of others. A disciple doesn’t brag, “I’m the one in charge.” Jesus came to serve the least of his brothers and sisters. In doing so,...
September 2014
On June 15, 1955, a siren sounded, signaling a nuclear-attack drill. The entire population of New York City obediently sought shelter in basements and subway stations, or, in the case of schoolchildren, under their desks. According to the authorities, this first in a series of civil-defense drills was a “complete success.” Well, almost. It was marred by a middle-age, whitehaired woman and twenty-six others who refused to play this war game. Dorothy Day, founder of the Catholic Worker movement, and her companions instead sat in City Hall Park, where they were arrested and later sentenced to jail. The judge who imposed bail likened the protesters to “murderers” who had contributed to the “utter destruction of these three million theoretically killed in our city.”
A look at what Jesus said and did as he taught, especially about and in relationship to women. And what do today’s women do to bring Jesus’ teachings into action? At the core of the New Testament we find the kerygma: the proclamation of what Jesus Christ did. The confession that Jesus...
How Can We Reach Out to Catholics on the Outer Edges of Our Own Church? Throughout his first year of service, Pope Francis has encouraged Catholics to share the joy of the Gospel with every person they meet, especially those on the periphery of society. Since, as the saying goes, charity begins at home, what...
David Werthmann Often when we journey into a new lifestyle or job, if we really knew what we were getting into, we wouldn’t get into it. At the annunciation, Mary had serious questions as her future was announced. The angel’s answers may have sounded a little sketchy—even preposterous—to Mary, who...
I recently gave a talk titled “Celebrating Diversity in Unity” at St. Patrick Parish in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The topic was germane because of growing tensions among parishoners over the changing face of the parish. Like many Catholic parishes in the United States, St. Patrick’s is ethnically, culturally, and linguistically...
The February 2014 issue of Liguorian focuses on spiritual nourishment. Often we feel as if we simply don’t have the time to nourish ourselves spiritually. But there is a way: In Moments With God, Jacquelyn Graham suggests we turn waiting into praying: “Sometimes waiting is a mere annoyance, and sometimes...