Readings for January 1, 2014: Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God The mother of the messiah has been called many things in the last 2000 years — the Virgin Mary, Our Lady, the Blessed Mother. But call her…
Mary, Mother of God
A Face Like Jesus’
In our face we can see the life we or others have lived. We might be able to tell if one has lived a faithful or a faithless existence. How much of a reflection of Christ are we to others? …
The Challenge of Evangelization
Last week on Christmas Eve my husband, young son, and I were on the road driving across Maryland to visit family. This meant that we were passing through the Baltimore area right about the time when Christmas Eve Masses begin,…
The Incarnation and the Family
Readings for December 29, 2013: Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph Every year right after Christmas, we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family. There is an important reason for this. It’s easy to think the…
Sobering Thoughts for the New Year
After great anticipation, preparation and perhaps a few tears…Christmas day is over. We can now sit for a bit, catch our breath, and reflect back on the joy we have just shared. While you sit back and relax, let me…
Tiny Heart, Whose Blood Will Save Us
Merry Christmas, everyone! It’s Christmas, the season when we remember the birth of our Lord. He came into this world and we are filled with joy! We remember the words of the angels: Gloria in excelsis Deo! How happy are…
Action, Intention, and the Incarnation
Does what I do matter? We are now celebrating the Feast of the Incarnation. It is the mystery of God become Man – Jesus Christ, fully God and fully man. This mystery is so immense that it took several centuries…
The Deeper Meaning of Christmas
Readings for December 25, 2013: Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas) In the days of Caesar Augustus, an era of peace was established in the Mediterranean world after centuries of strife. But this peace was forged by the…
Your Unspeakable Kin
Who’s yours? You know, the relative, distant or near, who is an unending source of embarrassment or shame for “the family”? Everybody’s got one, maybe two. The great, great, great uncle who was a horse thief, the cousin twice removed…
Evangelizing with St. Nicholas
One of the challenges in the parish where I work is families seeing the value in coming together with other families and doing something for others. I have tried a few things in the past and they were not very…