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Author: Angela Rasmussen

Pope Francis and Children

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...

What did Pope Francis say about the Law?

Reuters recently reported that some Israeli rabbis had written the Vatican to express their “distress” about one line from Pope Francis’s recent addresses on Galatians: “The Law, however, does not give life.” According to Reuters, the rabbis worry that this...

Prioritizing commandments

A reflection on the readings for Sunday, August 29, 2021 — The Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time Today’s first reading depicts Moses introducing the laws he is about to teach the Israelites. The commandments God has given allow them to live...

Juan De Juanes, Last Supper

The Eucharist needs to be more inclusive

The conversation around the Eucharist in recent months has focused on political figures and “Eucharistic coherence.” I can’t help but juxtapose these largely theoretical discussions with the real barriers to the Eucharist that exist for many of the faithful. I...

The calling of the prophet

A reflection on the readings for Sunday, July 4, 2021 — the Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Today’s Old Testament and Gospel readings are about prophets. If you ask the average person what a prophet is, they will likely say, “someone...

Flames

Is it our job to divide?

Is division a necessary part of being a truth-telling Christian? Some Catholics, including clergy, point to Jesus’ statement in Luke 12 as a clear indication that divisiveness is part of our calling as Christians: Do you think that I have...

The “Good God”/”Bad God” myth

Richard Dawkins wrote in The God Delusion: “The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic,...

Race and Catholic books for children

In recent weeks, protestors in cities across the United States and Europe have toppled statues of historical figures who participated in, or even fought for, slavery and the slave trade. While at first, the focus was on monuments to the...