Salvation in Imperfection
There are, in every parish, those who can be relied upon to be always late for Mass. They are sometimes referred to as the “Gloria crowd.” My deacon in one parish was a retired military man, whose adulation for the...
Tagged: sin
Sins Like Scarlet
Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. (Isaiah 1:18) There is a legendary story,...
Any bit of contrition
Always lost for words, I never knew what to say to God as I tried to focus my attention on him at Sunday Mass. I admit that I did not always find Mass interesting. I attended every week mostly out...
Knowing the Father’s Love and Mercy
A reflection on the readings for the Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, September 11, 2022. “Filled with compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.” The parables of mercy, three of which we hear today, are meant...
Blessed Are the Weak
In her autobiography, St. Teresa of Avila describes a challenge she was not able to meet. It was around 1542, and Teresa was having experiences that caused her serious concern. I arranged that the priest I said was such a...
Becoming Sensitive to Our Own Sin
A reflection on the readings for April 3, 2022, the Fifth Sunday of Lent (Gospel: John 8:1-11) In an October 26, 1946, radio message to participants in the National Catechetical Congress of the United States in Boston, Pope Pius XII...
The Social Dimension of Sin, Repentance, and Reconciliation
A reflection on the Sunday readings for April 18, 2021 — The Third Sunday of Easter It is rare for all three Sunday liturgy readings to have a common theme. Today is one of those rare Sundays. Sin, repentance, forgiveness, and reconciliation—we...
Acknowledging that we are sinners
“I am a sinner, but I trust in the infinite mercy and patience of our Lord Jesus Christ.” These were the first words spoken by Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio when asked by the cardinal dean if he accepted his canonical...
We Are All Penguins and Lobsters
God’s continuous act of separation occurs in the so-called first creation account of Genesis (Gen 1:1–2:3): light from darkness, water from water, water from land. This act of separation provides form to the formless, and as creation proceeds so too...
Colleen Carroll Campbell: Finding Perfection in God
The Heart of Perfection: How the Saints Taught Me to Trade My Dream of Perfect for God’s, Colleen Carroll Campbell’s new book, correctly diagnoses a spiritual problem afflicting millions and millions of Catholics, especially in the United States where rugged...
Out of the Garden
To live in the freedom of Christ is to live in hope, peace, and joy. Yet, during our earthly life, our Christian freedom is constantly in danger, through our own sinfulness, the temptations of the world, and our own human...
Mortal Sin: the Consequences of Confusion
A common confusion I see among Catholics is a misunderstanding of mortal sin that conflates mortal sin and grave matter. This misunderstanding has serious consequences and distorts the very heart of our faith. Concerning mortal sin, the Catechism says: “Mortal...
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