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February 2014 Iconographers painting the face of Our Mother of Perpetual Help use a fourth-century style to describe what our Blessed Mother looks like. This description circulated throughout the churches of Syria and Greece, where early iconography developed. This distinct form is taken from ancient fragments of a manuscript attributed...
February 2014 "Knowledge of Jesus is not the same as belief in him or love of him." While we lament the closure or consolidation of many parochial schools over the past twenty-five years, we can also celebrate that another area of Catholic education, faith formation, has come into its own....
February 2014 "Modern life imposes a brutal set of expectations." A few years ago, a poem made the rounds of the music ministry community. In essence, it said that to be a minister is to give even when it hurts, when you yourself are in need, and perhaps even when...
February 2014 In my ideal life, I rise early, reflect quietly, exercise hard, and then eat a decent breakfast with plenty of coffee. But real-world demands like getting kids to school on time, preparing for a meeting, or ironing a shirt often steamroll my hopes for reflection and exercise. I...
Q. What is the mission of Pax Christi USA?
PCUSA strives to create a world that reflects the peace of Christ by exploring, articulating, and witnessing to the call of Christian nonviolence. PCUSA rejects war, preparation for war, and every form of violence and domination. It advocates primacy of conscience, economic and social justice, and respect for creation.
PCUSA commits itself to peace education and, with the help of its bishop members, promotes the gospel imperative of peacemaking as a priority in the Catholic Church in the United States. Through the efforts of its members and in cooperation with other groups, PCUSA works toward a more peaceful, just, and sustainable world.
For their anniversary a couple went out for a rare romantic dinner. When they returned home, their teenage daughters had set the dining room table with china, crystal, and candles, and had left a note saying, “Dessert is in the refrigerator. We’re staying with friends, so go ahead and do something...
What’s So Blessed About Being Poor? L. SUSAN SLAVIN AND CORALIS SALVADOR ORBIS BOOKS $23.00 Susan Slavin, a human-rights attorney from New York, volunteered as part of a justice and peace initiative on the Kenyan coast. Recalling the well-known Beatitude “Blessed are the poor,” she was skeptical as she witnessed...
January 2014 Any human virtue or perfection that we strive to cultivate in our lifetime is but a faint image of God’s perfection. Ironically, of all God’s perfections, the one that reigns supreme is his simplicity. And it is simplicity that Jesus commands us to imi- tate: “Be perfect, just...
January 2014 "Despite the diversity within the Church, are we culturally insensitive?" The church custodian calls 911 because two men are lingering in the church after lighting candles at our Lady’s shrine. The church has experienced a few robberies at the poor box, and the custodian says the two dark-skinned...
January 2014 "We must create unity, not division, within the body of Christ." The term “relativism” gets a lot of attention in Catholic circles these days. The idea of not drawing a distinct line between right and wrong contradicts everything we believe as Christians. It’s a dangerous threat. But...
January 2014 Welcome to January’s issue of Liguorian, where our theme is diversity and unity. For me, the theme has a special resonance as I think about Pope Francis and his inspirational words and actions. In a general audience in October, the Pope addressed the joy and power that can be...
The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium), completed by the Second Vatican Council in December 1963, set in motion the most far-reaching liturgical reform in Catholic history. The initiation of this momentous change within the Catholic Church in America came on the heels of the social and political upheaval...
Two young boys were spending the night with their grandparents. At bedtime they knelt to say their prayers. The younger one began praying at the top of his lungs, “I PRAY FOR A NEW BICYCLE, I PRAY FOR A NEW X-BOX, I PRAY FOR A NEW DVD….” His older brother...
Meditations on Vatican Art Fr. Mark Haydu, LC, STL Liguori Publications $29.99 Art can be an exercise in prayer for the artist and for those resting in the hands of their creative gifts. The encounter with color, texture, line, shape, light, and shadow ignites our imagination and invites our participation...
December 2013 I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: One of the gifts or graces that Mary exemplifies and offers to those who pray to her is joy. And this joy is unique. It has the ability to permeate every moment of our lives, even those moments that...
December 2013 "Christ is there whether we’re preoccupied or not." When I was little and attended Mass, I dreaded the homily every week—and the Eucharistic Prayer, and usually the readings. In fact, I think I dreaded all of Mass except the songs. Because at least during those, I knew what...
December 2013 Welcome to our December issue, in which we mark the seasons of Advent and Christmas. The season always brings to my mind memories of Christmas vacations when I was a kid. What do you remember about your Christmas vacations? Were they brimming with excitement and anticipation, itchy from...
Ideas like morality, relationships, hope, and love are hard to understand and sometimes even harder to live out in a Christian way. What can we use to help us when choices are tough, answers vague, and the future uncertain? The roots of Catholic social teaching offer some simple ideas that,...
This month’s issue is about discernment—a difficult concept. Our best choices sometimes come only after prayerful contemplation. Fr. Mark Haydu, the international coordinator of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums, finds inspiration in art. His new book, Meditations on Vatican Art, offers readers a doorway to the beauty...
November 2013 "Has technology made us disengaged?" Years ago I stopped wearing a watch; a watch hanging on my wrist annoys me. As a result, I often ask people for the time. I stop someone, ask the question, look them in the eye, and listen carefully to their response. I...