Judaism Ancient and New

Remnant of Israel At the present time, “there is a Remnant chosen by grace” (Romans 11:5). Isaiah cries out concerning Israel (Romans 9:27), “If the number is as the sand of the sea, a remnant will repent and return and be saved” (my tra … [Read more...]

The Year of Joseph

I hear Joseph silently confessing his sinfulness to the Angel of the Lord (see Matthew 1:18–25): “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof but only say the Word and my soul shall be healed.” We have critical memory los … [Read more...]

Reflections on Three Saving Mysteries of the Christmas Season

“I will tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to me, ‘You are my son, today I have begotten you’” (Ps 2:7). The psalmist is referring here to Israel’s anointed, or messianic, king. As God’s anointed one, he is God’s “son,” God’s earthly re … [Read more...]

The Final Battle: Marriage and Family

One: Mary-with-Joseph is the Terror of Demons In 1917, in the month of May, when special devotions to Mary are observed, our Blessed Mother appeared to three small children in Fatima, Portugal. She spoke to them and promised she would … [Read more...]

St. Joseph “Patris Corde” As a Pastoral Icon

On the 150th anniversary of the declaration of St. Joseph as the patron of the universal church, Pope Francis released the Apostolic Letter “Patris corde,” which means “with a father’s heart.” (1, 2) This is in the spirit of Pope Pius IX’s d … [Read more...]

Is the Holy Family a Realistic Model for Ordinary Families?

In this time of troubled marriages and beleaguered families, a renewed focus on the Holy Family, and what it teaches us, can act as a bracing support. Dr. Mary Shivanandan’s new book, The Holy Family, Model Not Exception, provides just such … [Read more...]

Ite ad Joseph

"Ite ad Joseph" (Go to Joseph)—a million pilgrims a year visit the Oratory on Queen Mary Road in Montreal where these words are inscribed at the base of a statue of St. Joseph at the main entrance. In the Old Testament story of Joseph and h … [Read more...]

Questions Answered

Pope Francis seems to be placing a renewed emphasis on the teachings of the Church regarding the ethical pursuit of wealth and business. Are there practical norms for the correct use of economic power in a firm? Lumen Gentium was very … [Read more...]

In the Fullness of Time: The Fullness of Family

The incident related in the Gospel of Luke, celebrated as the “Finding in the Temple,” has always been troubling. It’s the one and only glimpse we’re given into the “secret life” of the Holy Family. Earlier, we see baby Jesus with Simeon and … [Read more...]

The Eternal Presence of the House of Nazareth

The family life of Jesus, Mary and Joseph in Nazareth is an ever-present revelation of God’s purposes and work in the world, inviting to holiness families of the 21st century.   Does the household of Jesus, Mary and Joseph in the small vi … [Read more...]