Catholic. Pastoral. Trusted.
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...
Gobsmacked! Flabbergasted! Thunderstruck! Words seem inadequate to describe the likely reaction of the apostles and Mary when they “began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim” while praying in the Upper Room on Pentecost (Acts 2:4). Similarly, when devout Jews from many nations gathered in...
As we make our way through Lent and prepare for Easter, our Lord gives us a glorious opportunity to reset and repurpose our lives. Now is the time to cleanse and renew. Now is the time to revive ourselves in the holy Eucharist. We are in the midst of a...
The Palm Sunday and Good Friday proclamations of Jesus’ passion can feel overwhelming. There is so much for our souls and our liturgy to take in. The arrest of Jesus, his interrogation, scourging, crowning with thorns, condemnation, the carrying of the cross, and his crucifixion can overload our liturgy and...
Let Easter be the day you break open a new way to see the Real Presence of Christ. Many Easters ago, my family drove to the city where I ministered to attend Mass and allow us to spend the holiday together. To spare my mom from preparing a big meal...
Let’s talk candidly about overworked clergy. Such a conversation automatically excludes low-energy, lethargic priests—the ones who are usually unavailable for extra tasks. Let us consider for example, pastors with few, if any, associate priests or deacons to share the taxing workload. Or pastors without a fluent Spanish-speaking minister when the...
Over the past few decades, many dioceses have taken on the hard task of closing and merging parishes in urban areas. Too many buildings and not enough people have led to right-sizing, downsizing, renewal, planning, restructuring, or reimagining. As well-intentioned as efforts may be, they are often met with mistrust,...
In the Old Testament’s Second Book of Maccabees, there is an account of high priest Eleazar’s final words before his death. In his bold profession of faith, he reveals the mystery at work in the heart of every martyr: “I am not only enduring terrible pain in my body…but also...
A- mid the hustle and bustle of Christmastime, count your blessings. Through random acts of Christian kindness, give back to your family and community your counsel and compassion, your time and talent, your word and witness. ♠ Be attentive to the sounds of the holy season: a child’s laughter,...
Let’s make a pledge to pray for change in the hearts and minds of those who would willfully destroy the sanctity and dignity of human life. Our prayers may help lost souls living among us. Christ and the saints teach us that every soul is worth saving for the Kingdom...
A synod is an event that takes place for a period of time, in a designated place, and for a purpose. An example is the 2014–15 synod on the family and its mission and vocation in the Church. That synod experience helped produce the post-synodal apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia (“The...
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...
In Never Hug a Nun, novelist Kevin Killeen describes the weekly Catholic newspaper as an “important source of religious news and ads for honest tree trimmers.” Set in 1966, a scene from the book details a suburban housewife reclining on a sofa and reaching for the diocesan newspaper atop a...
The parish council was having a heated discussion about the church bulletin. Should we print or not? Should we even continue it? What are the options? How will we reach people if we don’t have a bulletin? What about our advertisers? Our bulletin editor does such a great job, how...
One of my favorite memories is walking in the park with my mother. They were quite ordinary walks, but as the ninth child of ten it felt extraordinary to have my mother all to myself. What I recall is how my mother would look at me, listening to what I...
This month, we Catholics commemorate the Exaltation of the Holy Cross and Our Lady of Sorrows on back-to-back days, September 14 and 15. What can we glean from the feast and the memorial, respectively, while also enduring sufferings in our society and our world? Through Jesus and Mary, we see...
Often more than a few steps ahead of us, Pope Francis has surprised us again. Still in the thick of the Synod on Synodality, which will conclude in 2023, in February he announced a Holy Year for 2025. Themed “Pilgrims of Hope,” it calls Catholics to prayer and penance, pilgrimages...
Age is relative. When primary school students were asked, “What’s a good age for marriage?” one respondent thought fifty was the right age to tie the knot because people had eliminated all the “excitements” from their system by then. Another student evidently felt it took far longer to get rid...
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...
The word mother can evoke many ideas and images. When we think of Mary, the Mother of God, we may picture a passive, quiet woman. Most artistic depictions of the annunciation illustrate her reflexively saying yes to God in accepting the angel’s invitation to be the mother of Jesus. When...