Are You a Youthful Disciple?

What was it like when you first believed that Jesus has power over death? When you had that conversion that led to your personal relationship with Jesus Christ? For me, it was (literally and figuratively) a springtime. A new part…

Not a Spook: An Opportunity for Discovery

Readings for April 19, 2015: Third Sunday of Easter In the heyday of the Roman Empire, the corruption of the times caused a wave of dissatisfaction to arise.  Many were disgusted with the gross sensuality of society and yearned for…

But Who’s My Brother?!?

Ahhh!  The Easter season. I love it: buds peeking their way through the cold damp ground, longer days, and milder weather. It’s almost as if everyone comes out of hiding from the dark winter and into the brighter days of…

A Winning Team: Pope Francis and Our Lady

What is the one thing that Pope Francis is rarely without? Hint: He always brings it with him and is seen wearing it in the majority of his pictures.  Give up?  It’s his smile.  Do an Internet search of images…

Turning the Other Cheek

But I say this to you who are listening: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who treat you badly. To anyone who slaps you on one cheek, present…

Romance Has No Reason

I don’t believe the cultural attack on marriage is an accident. While we are making progress as a culture in some areas like respect for unborn life, there is little question that we are losing the importance of marriage.  There…

Mandatory – Be Gone

A list of synonyms for the word mandatory includes compulsory, obligatory, requisite, binding, fixed, and set.  It is a strong word, not to be used lightly and certainly not to be used unless it is accurate describing something. I propose…

From Doubt to Faith: The Lesson of Thomas

Readings for April 12, 2015: Second Sunday of Easter, Sunday of Divine Mercy We don’t know where Thomas was.  All we know is that he missed it.  All the others were huddling together behind locked doors, hoping that the authorities…

You Can’t Win

You can’t win. You can’t. But that’s nothing new. Jesus and John faced the same problem: “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market places and calling to their playmates, ‘We piped…

From Hub to Heart, via Medjugorje

At the Catholic Men’s Conference in Boston in 2010, Andy LaVallee met Jim Caviezel, not knowing he portrayed Jesus in The Passion of Christ. Jim dared Andy to go with him to Medjugorje, an obscure, poor village in Croatia. For…