Mar102013

BRINGING HOME THE SCRUTINIES

By My Year of Faith on March 10, 2013 in Feasts and the Liturgical Calendar

Today we celebrate the 4th Sunday in Lent. Depending on what Mass you went to, you might have witnessed the second of the three Scrutinies. For some of us, when we see or hear that it’s time for the Scrutinies again, there’s an...

Mar092013

TWO SONS

By Fr. Jim Shafer on March 09, 2013 in Sunday Readings

Two sons. The passage concerning these two is found in the 15th chapter of St. Luke. This 4th Sunday of Lent, we are invited to reflect on the piece we call The Prodigal Son. I will begin by telling you that it is misnamed, or could have been...

Mar082013

THE HOLY SPIRIT AT WORK IN THE CHURCH – PART 2

By Fr. Mitch Pacwa, S.J. on March 08, 2013 in The Church

Editor's Note: Today we resume with Fr. Mitch Pacwa's “The Holy Spirit at Work in the Church”. Yesterday, in Part 1, Fr. Mitch identified 3 ways the Spirit is working in and through the Church for our good: The Holy Spirit 1) makes...

Mar072013

THE HOLY SPIRIT AT WORK IN THE CHURCH – PART 1

By Fr. Mitch Pacwa, S.J. on March 07, 2013 in The Church

The Scripture teaches and the Church believes that the Holy Spirit is God, the third Person of the Blessed Trinity. We read in the Book of Acts that when Ananias and Sapphira held back money they said they would contribute, St. Peter told Ananias...

Mar062013

O MY SOUL

By Audrey Assad on March 06, 2013 in Feasts and the Liturgical Calendar

Every Lent I am surprised by how truly difficult it can be to give something up and stick to it. Even harder is giving anyone the impression that I’m enjoying myself. Usually for the first few weeks I hobble through my sacrifice with little to...

Mar052013

A FAMILY FOLLOWS GOD’S PLAN

By Liz Malmstrom on March 05, 2013 in The Faith in Action

Most people wonder how and why our family would make the choice to go to Haiti for a year. When we told people, there were two responses: “It is amazing that you are doing that, how giving,” and “Are you crazy?” I disagree with both. We...

Mar042013

HEARTS OF FLESH

By Steve Gershom on March 04, 2013 in Theology of the Body

Gay or straight, first world or third, healthy or sick or totally deformed, you’re going to suffer. There was a time when I used to wonder why I, as a gay Catholic, had been singled out for what seemed to be an unusually cruel lot. Now...

Mar032013

A MISSION TO SHARE

By My Year of Faith on March 03, 2013 in Saints

Born into a wealthy family, Katharine Drexel was raised on an interesting idea: their wealth was not their own; it was simply on loan to them and, therefore, should be shared with others. It was a lesson that she lived in her life and...

Mar022013

WORSHIPING IN SPIRIT AND IN TRUTH

By Fr. Glenn Kohrman on March 02, 2013 in Sunday Readings

Today we celebrate the 3rd Sunday of Lent. In some Churches the readings will be taken from cycle A instead of the current cycle C. This is because some churches celebrate the scrutinies. This is an interesting word is it not? Who likes to...

Mar012013

ADOPT A CARDINAL

By My Year of Faith on March 01, 2013 in The Church

When I first heard about this new (and awesome) initiative, there were only about 18,000 people on board. As of this writing, there are just under 125,000 faithful men and women who have promised to pray for our Cardinals during the next few...

Feb282013

MY PAPA

By My Year of Faith on February 28, 2013 in The Church

In honor of our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, who serves his final day as Roman Pontiff, here are 10 individuals who have shared memories, stories and reflections of Pope Benedict and what it was like to encounter the Vicar of Christ. Longer...

Feb272013

CALLING THE HOMOSEXUAL HEART

By Melinda Selmys on February 27, 2013 in Theology of the Body

John Paul II speaks of Christ's “appeal to the heart.” What he is describing here is not a simple set of rules and regulations which people can follow but rather a process, a kind of interior hermeneutic of the person which is the work of a...

Feb262013

USING THE HELPER DAY-IN AND DAY-OUT

By Katie Coonan on February 26, 2013 in Prayer and Devotion

As a young adult, newly introduced to the career world, I am often finding myself still asking those big 'life questions'. Even adults who are settled still go through moments of trial and tribulation. As humans we are ever-changing,...

Feb252013

IF YOU SEE CHARITY

By Kathy Denise on February 25, 2013 in The Faith in Action

In Pope Benedict XVI's encyclical letter Deus Caritas Est (“God Is Love”), we learn the true meaning of charity. We learn that it is impossible to separate love and charity, and we learn charity is the responsibility of the...

Feb242013

THE STRUGGLE FOR HOLINESS

By Daniel Przybyla on February 24, 2013 in Sacraments

I can't recall my first Confession, but it took place in 1984 at St. Jude's in Fort Wayne. I have no idea how many times since then I've gone to Confession. I guess it's not something you keep a tally of, like visits to Wrigley...

Feb232013

RISE, AND DO NOT BE AFRAID

By Fr. Andrew Budzinski on February 23, 2013 in Sunday Readings

You could say that Jesus gives the Apostles a preview of what is about to happen. The Transfiguration is a sneak peek, if you will, of the Resurrection. We hear in Sacred Scripture: “He was transfigured before them; his face shone like the...

Feb222013

THE CHAIR OF ST. PETER AND PAPAL INFALLIBILITY

By Fr. John Trigilio, Jr on February 22, 2013 in The Church

The recent announcement of Pope Benedict XVI's abdication from the papacy, effective February 28, 2013, makes the Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter all the more relevant. February 22nd is the day the universal church celebrates the Petrine...

Feb212013

3 SIMPLE WAYS TO CELEBRATE THE YEAR OF FAITH ONLINE

By Brandon Vogt on February 21, 2013 in The Faith in Action

When Pope Benedict announced the Year of Faith, he described it as a time to “reinforce our faith in [Christ] and to proclaim him with joy to the people of our time.” There are plenty of ways to live this out throughout the year: you can...

Feb202013

SPEAKING THROUGH PROPHETS

By Dr. John Bergsma on February 20, 2013 in Creed

People are fascinated with predictions of the future. Around New Year, supermarket tabloids boost sales by running articles on “top psychic predictions for the coming year.” While the Catholic Church does not endorse psychics, she does...

Feb192013

HE WILL NOT SPEAK ON HIS OWN

By Catechism of the Catholic Church on February 19, 2013 in Catechism

685 To believe in the Holy Spirit is to profess that the Holy Spirit is one of the persons of the Holy Trinity, consubstantial with the Father and the Son: “with the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified.”[1] For this reason,...

Feb182013

A PRESIDENTS DAY TO-DO

By My Year of Faith on February 18, 2013 in Prayer and Devotion

On the third Monday of February, we observe Presidents Day. This year, that falls on February 18th…today! Many of us have the day off work or school. How do you plan on observing this national holiday? Maybe you slept in or enjoyed a...

Feb172013

FAITH AND CONVERSION

By Bishop Kevin Rhoades on February 17, 2013 in Bishop Kevin Rhoades

Pope Benedict has described this Year of Faith as “a summons to an authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord, the one Savior of the world.” As we journey through Lent during this Year of Faith, it is good to recall the words of Jesus at...

Feb162013

NOTHING TO FEAR

By Fr. Mark Gurtner on February 16, 2013 in Sunday Readings

The movie The Passion of the Christ begins with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane with Peter, James, and John. Satan comes to Jesus to tempt Him. The temptation is very subtle; Satan is trying to sow doubt into the mind of Jesus by telling Him...

Feb152013

ENTER INTO HIS PASSION

By Fr. Kevin Grove, CSC on February 15, 2013 in Prayer and Devotion

Both as individuals and as the Body of Christ, the Church, we adore and praise our Lord because by his holy cross he has redeemed us and our world. Pope Benedict expressed the way that Christ and the cross relate to us: “The experience of...

Feb142013

DEAR FRIEND: A LETTER FROM YOUR VALENTINE

By Christina Emilian on February 14, 2013 in The Faith in Action

Dear Friend, Red, pink, hearts, lace, candy, cards, music, dancing, flowers, romantic comedies, sentimental notes, love, love, love… I know you hate Valentine's Day. I know how you feel bombarded by things that emphasize what you lack. I...