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...
Years ago, my pastor took a group of men from my parish on a pilgrimage down to Mexico City, to visit the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe at Tepeyac Hill—where Our Lady appeared to St. Juan Diego in 1531—and...
In my thirty years on this earth, I have strived to live according to the commandments handed down by God fully manifest in the incarnate and risen Jesus Christ. It is never easy, regardless of which commandment. While all are...
Many Catholics today try to find solace in their suffering by imposing meaning upon their experiences. The desire to make sense of the chaos of the modern age often leads people to attempt to customize their lives and the lives...
There is an ancient tradition that before the Fall, Adam and Eve were clothed with the Glory of God. Their relationship with God was so intimate that His life radiated out from their very skin. When Eve looked at Adam,...
In Pope Francis’s 2013 apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, he expressed his desire for a renewed missionary impulse throughout the entire Church. Francis called for the Church to become more mission-oriented by making “ordinary pastoral activity on every level more inclusive...
In the United States, a pervasive intellectualism continues its stranglehold on Catholics, thwarting our flourishing. Again and again, we hear the need for “doctrinal clarity,” or about how Pope Francis is “confusing.” Many seem to believe that being clear-minded and...
What do you do when you find yourself in disagreement with a Church teaching or objecting to a discipline that the Church legitimately imposes? Many Catholics find themselves in this place at some point in their life of faith. Some...
The German cardinal Walter Kasper opens the first chapter of his book Mercy: The Essence of the Gospel and the Key to Christian Life by describing the twentieth century as “a horrible century in many respects.” Continuing his deplorable description...
In his Angelus address this morning, Pope Francis spoke about today’s Gospel reading, the Miracle of the Loaves that opens the sixth chapter of the Gospel according to St. John. As he has done in the past, Pope Francis made...
In 2017 Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History podcast released an episode called “The Destroyer of Worlds.” I’d recommend everybody listen to it, but don’t expect to come away feeling buoyant about humanity’s future. The title “Destroyer of Worlds” is a quote...
When I heard that Pope Francis had promulgated a motu proprio reimposing restrictions on the celebration of the 1962 Missal (or the Vetus Ordo), my first thought was this was greatly needed and long overdue. My second thought was that...
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