Celibacy for the Kingdom of God might seem like an obstacle in relating to the struggles of married people, including but not limited to spousal conflicts, balancing home and work duties, managing multiple children, and dealing with in-laws … [Read more...]
Magazine
Some Reflections on the Spiritual Life for the Lockdown
With much of our ordinary life still affected by the lockdown, it can be harder than ever to keep our heart fixed on the Lord and his divine providence. Rather than prayer, spiritual reading, contemplation and encouraging others, we may … [Read more...]
Quod Scripsi, Scripsi: The Life and Legacy of Marvin R. O’Connell
April 22, 2021 by Richard J. Janet, PhD
At the end of his recently published posthumous memoir, Father Marvin O’Connell quotes the words of Pontius Pilate from Scriptures. “Even though I too can write Quod scripsi, scripsi, my trouble is not the same as Pilate’s. My trouble has to … [Read more...]
The Mass that Always Was There
April 22, 2021 by Gerard T. Mundy
As a result of the 2020-2021 coronavirus pandemic, Catholic bishops in dioceses around the world restricted public access to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. In the United States, every Latin Rite diocese reportedly canceled public Masses at … [Read more...]
The Dangers of Safety
April 9, 2021 by Fr. Sean O'Brien
We had a pre-existing condition, but we didn’t know it. Before the days of COVID, I was aware that I was in a safety-based culture. We could think of the expansion of insurance (I bought a phone recently and was automatically involved in an … [Read more...]
Early Theologies of Purgatory
April 9, 2021 by Dr. David W. T. Brattston
How can a loving and merciful God send a person into endless torture in hell? Actually, He does not. They send themselves there. The only unpleasantness to which He channels them is purgatory, where they have the hope of rising to … [Read more...]
A “Modest Proposal” for a Pastoral Year Apostolate
April 9, 2021 by Fr. Peter Stravinskas
As the academic year winds down, administrators go into overdrive in planning for the next year, hence, the rationale for my present musings. Since it appears that most seminaries/dioceses are now moving (or have moved) to a mandatory … [Read more...]
Expanding the Narratives of Scripture
April 9, 2021 by Brandon P. Otto
For all the depth hidden in Scripture, it can often appear barebones to the storyteller; frequently only the simplest actions, the most basic order of events, is described. One can hunger for more detail, for more color, for more character. … [Read more...]
Conscience: Christ’s Whisper in Our Moral Life
April 9, 2021 by Eric Manuel Torres
Elijah, who is “very jealous for the Lord” (1 Kgs 19:4, 14), meets the Lord on Mount Horeb. On the mount, a powerful wind blows, then an earthquake shakes the ground, and then a fire erupts; however, the Lord is not in these great “voices.” … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – April 2021
April 9, 2021 by Book Reviews
The Sacraments: Discovering the Treasures of Divine Life. By Rev. Matthew Kauth. Reviewed by Aaron Martin. (skip to review) Telling Stories That Matter: Memoirs and Essays. By Marvin R. O’Connell. Reviewed by Christopher Siuzdak. (skip t … [Read more...]
Homilies for April 2021
March 26, 2021 by Fr. Peter Stravinskas
For Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Divine Mercy Sunday, and the Third Sunday and Fourth Sunday of Easter. A Preached Triduum Retreat Holy Thursday – April 1, 2021 Readings: Chrism Mass, Is 61:1–3a, 6a, 8b–9 • Ps 89:21 … [Read more...]
Coming Home for Easter: The Challenge and a Method
March 26, 2021 by Fr. Richard Gribble, CSC
Steven Spielberg’s 1982 motion picture classic E. T. — The Extraterrestrial captured the hearts and minds of moviegoers around the world, with its combination of comedy, drama, and tragedy. The plot of the film described E.T.’s quest to “go … [Read more...]
Sanctuary
March 26, 2021 by Carolyn Humphreys, OCDS
Sanctuary is like a singularly beautiful flower in a vast garden of words. It comes in varieties ranging from a place where we are safe from harm to an interior region of the heart where God dwells. “Sanctuary” originates from the Latin roo … [Read more...]
Mass Attendance and Cura Personalis
March 26, 2021 by Matthew Kappadakunnel
The novel coronavirus pandemic resulted in novel dilemmas for Catholic parishes. In compliance with local health mandates, many parishes quickly augmented their technological capabilities to offer “virtual Mass” to provide members a safe opt … [Read more...]
Unity and Peace
March 26, 2021 by Rev. Kenneth M. Dos Santos, MIC
Is it possible to obtain an everlasting peace through purely human efforts and means? Will men, in and of themselves, ever possess the ability to provide all races and cultures with perpetual peace and unity? Is eternal peace and the … [Read more...]
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