When I was in college, the leader of a young adult group told me something like, “While the particular vocation a person is called to is the best vocation for them, the priesthood and consecrated vocations are objectively greater.” At the time I was dating or engaged, so I was pretty annoyed by...
In the program’s 74th year, the Christopher Awards have once honored various books, TV shows, and movies. The Christopher Awards celebrate writers, producers, directors, authors, and illustrators whose work ‘affirms the highest values of the human spirit’ and reflects the Christopher motto, ‘It’s better to light one candle than to curse the darkness.’...
Pope Francis is surely one of the most polarizing figures of the 21st century, and perhaps the most controversial pontiff since Blessed Pius IX. It seems that either one loves him or decries him as an enemy of the Catholic way of life. Why? In addressing the question, we need to be mindful...
When I was in college, the leader of a young adult group told me something like, “While the particular vocation a person is called to is the best vocation for them, the priesthood and consecrated vocations are objectively greater.” At the time I was dating or engaged, so I was pretty annoyed by...
In the program’s 74th year, the Christopher Awards have once honored various books, TV shows, and movies. The Christopher Awards celebrate writers, producers, directors, authors, and illustrators whose work ‘affirms the highest values of the human spirit’ and reflects the Christopher motto, ‘It’s better to light one candle than to curse the darkness.’...
Pope Francis is surely one of the most polarizing figures of the 21st century, and perhaps the most controversial pontiff since Blessed Pius IX. It seems that either one loves him or decries him as an enemy of the Catholic way of life. Why? In addressing the question, we need to be mindful...
A reflection on the readings for the Fifth Sunday of Lent, March 26, 2023. During my years as a high school chaplain, I would welcome the incoming freshmen with the following piece of advice: Some people look back on their high school years as the most miserable time in their lives. Whether it...
“Everything in the Church must be conformed to the requirements of the proclamation of the Gospel; not to the opinions of the conservatives or the progressives, but to the fact that Jesus reaches people’s lives. Therefore, every choice, every usage, every structure, and every tradition is be evaluated on the basis of whether...
Ten years into the pontificate of Pope Francis, anecdotes and experiences that different people had with him, and analyses about his theology, his pastoral style, and his magisterium are emerging. We transcribe here the thoughts then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio shared with the Schoenstatt Fathers in Buenos Aires two days before his departure to Rome....
Pope Francis has had many humorous and poignant interactions with children over the last ten years that demonstrate his pastoral emphasis on dialogue and listening. Here are five of my favorite examples of the Pope’s special consideration for children: His response to the little boy whose father had died Francis was visiting a...
Today, we are pleased to announce a new initiative. Pedro Gabriel and Claire Domingues are launching their new Papal Primers Concise Guides. The plan is to create summary guides of the Church’s most relevant and recent documents in a printable format, as an aid for those who may wish to study these documents....
About a dozen years ago, I got into a bit of a dust-up about the Eucharist in the middle of a Lenten prayer group meeting. The readings and reflections for the evening focused on Eucharist and what we believe as Catholics about the Real Presence. As a parish catechist in multiple grades, I...
Last week, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò — the former apostolic nuncio to the United States — published a new open letter, wherein the fugitive churchman welcomes the founding of the “International Movement of Russophiles.” I do not exaggerate when I describe it as the most astounding and bizarre public document created by this...
I first heard of Liz Hansen a couple of years ago when I read her article in Crisis Magazine titled, “Franciscan University and Its Friars Face a Reckoning.” While I didn’t attend Franciscan University as a student, I did attend five Steubenville Youth Conferences when I was in high school and then...
A reflection on the readings for March 19, 2023, the Fourth Sunday of Lent. Click here for the audio version. “Just because we have eyes does not mean we see.” On this the fourth Sunday of Lent, we hear a poignant story about a man born blind who came to see and people...
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