Catholic. Pastoral. Trusted.
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...
God disappointed me deeply when I was 8. At that age, my nascent understanding of the power of God and my developing interest in gadgets overlapped and caused my brain to generate what I thought at the time to be an awesome idea. I prayed fervently, intensely, longingly, devoutly, and...
In his column From the President Liguori Publications President, Fr. Donald Willard, CSsR, offers pastoral and theological insight to connect the reader with the spiritual message of each issue. The Rev. Willard was ordained to the priesthood on June 8, 2008. Raised on a farm near Pittsfield, IL, he attended...
As I write this at the end of August, tensions are hot but cooling in Ferguson, MO. You know the background: On Aug. 9, a white police officer named Darren Wilson stopped a young black man named Michael Brown on the street. It’s unclear what happened next, but it is...
September 2014 My liturgy professor once shocked me out of my post-lunch comatose state one afternoon by saying, “If the Eucharist does not cause you to want to make a difference in the world, then you are doing nothing more than making meaningless, ritual turns around an altar.” What could...
The Redeemer, Mary and You September 2014 The Icon-The Journey of an Icon: Part I The Icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help was entrusted to The Redemptorists in 1866; its history extends far beyond the years it has been under Redemptorist care. Although there is no written record about...
September 2014 More and more, we are aware of the vast migrations of people from one country to another, from one continent to another. We take for granted the minute-by-minute exchanges between financial markets across great distances. Technology and rapid, split-second sharing of information on the communication superhighway, imports and...
September 2014 Every so often when I read a Gospel story, I stop and say, “Huh?” Itseems like some crucial piece of information is missing. I get one of those inklings when I read the story of the disciples walking with Jesus on the road to Emmaus. It’s difficult to...
September 2014 Social responsibility and awareness are vital to the Christian moral life. This is because there are no individual Christians. By its very nature, the Catholic Church is a community. A person can’t baptize, anoint, or get married by her- or himself. All the sacraments involve a community. Even...
September 2014 Thieves broke into the empty home of my son’s friend but only grabbed his shoes. Why? Nothing else was worth taking. The young man—I’ll call him Jake—was orphaned at twelve and moved in with an aunt in a rough neighborhood. He was regularly urged to commit crimes and...
JOHAN VAN PARYS explores the variant forms of symbolism on which our faith is built and how gaining a deeper understanding of their roles can propel us forward in our spiritual growth.
July-August 2014 When Jesus was asked where the reign of God was to be found, he simply responded that the reign of God is in our midst—in the midst of our families, our faith community, and our neighborhoods—in the midst of our world. The reign of God is especially found...
July-August 2014 The Miraculous Icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help is the official title of this famous image of Mary. An icon is called miraculous when, through the prayers, devotion, and the sincere faith of those who come to the person represented in the icon, miracles occur. Not because...
July-August 2014 What’s in a namesake? This year, one of my beloved aunties turned eighty. She rides her bike every day. She attends choir rehearsal every week. And she loves to travel. Everyone knows her as Auntie Maddy. I was shocked when I learned many years ago that Maddy’s real...
July-August 2014 Throughout its history, the Church has paid attention to the female voice. GPS, cell phones, and many commercials have something in common—more often than not, a feminine tone communicates the information. Have you noticed that computerized announcements, such as those made at public facilities like the airport, the...
July-August 2014 Prayer is the glue that binds the body of Christ to its head and its members to each other. My grandmother looms large in my childhood memories. She spent her summers out on the farm, helping us pick and prepare, can and freeze a year’s worth of produce....
July-August 2014 We all have moments when we need healing in our lives. Maybe we suffer from an illness or just the wear of years on our bodies. Or maybe we need healing for hurts to our soul or mind. The Church offers us a wonderful sacrament, the anointing of...
As you read this, Fr. Don Willard and I are approaching our first anniversary as the leadership team at Liguori Publications. It often feels like mere weeks since we started. As did our predecessor, Redemptorist Fr. Mat Kessler, I like to keep you updated on what’s happening at Liguori. Talking with...