As human beings, we seem hard wired toward sharing news when it’s great news. We enthusiastically communicate with others all the time when we have really good news to share. It doesn’t take any special training or programmatic preparation. So…
Talk About Heaven
Advent: The Real Meaning of Christmas Lights
Readings for the 1st Sunday of Advent, November 27, 2016 As fall moves onward towards winter we have places to go, things to do, people to meet. Yet as we go about our business, we notice the days are getting…
…Silence
And all the multitude held their peace; and they heard Barnabas and Paul telling what great signs and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them. Acts 15:12 Take your cell phone and turn it off for an hour….
Helpfulness
Help others and you will be helped. Proverbs 11: 25b We can’t help others without helping ourselves. Helping others gives us a sense of purpose. It makes us feel useful, maybe even important. Reaching out to others generates good will….
Henry Edward Manning, Cardinal of Social Justice
Henry Cardinal Manning was one of those remarkable men and women of 19th century England who reversed the decline of Roman Catholicism and helped make the religion acceptable in England, Scotland and Ireland again. Others who worked alongside Cardinal Manning…
Trust in God’s Mercy
The Jubilee Year of Mercy has ended, and the Holy Doors have closed. I have to admit, I’m just a little relieved. I’m not exactly sure what I expected or hoped for, but it wasn’t what I got. This has…
What I Learned from the Year of Mercy
With the Jubilee Year of Mercy closing, I thought that it would be an appropriate time to reflect on what, if anything, I have learned about the Mercy of the Lord during this year. It turns out I learned a…
Christ the King
Sunday Readings for November 20, 2016 The Philistines had beaten them, and the Israelites were determined not to let it happen again. So they demanded from God and from his prophet, Samuel, what all the other nations had–a king to…
The Daily Examen
The examen is an examination of conscience done once or twice a day. There are five steps to it: 1. Give thanks to God our Lord for the benefits I have received 2. Ask for grace to know my sins…
Perfect Faith
Isn’t it exhausting? All that rule-keeping and striving to be good, doesn’t that just make you tired? The Church calls us to task about how we worship, act, think, pray and speak. Just keeping track of all that stuff is…