VATICAN CITY - Eradicating male and female identities does nothing to solve the problem of unfair or disrespectful treatment based on people's gender, Pope Francis said.

All presidents beseech God to bless the United States of America. Many pray for divine aid for themselves or their policies. Some can only wonder at the inscrutable ways of the Almighty.

Then there’s Frank Underwood, who spits in God’s face.

Long before today’s clamorous atheists (Christopher Hitchens, God is not Good; Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion; Sam Harris, The End of Faith, etc.) began filling bookshelves and public airwaves, there was one name that was synonymous, at least in England, with public atheism. That name was Antony Flew.

Third Sunday of Lent (Year B) March 8 (Exodus 20:1-17; Psalm 19; 1 Corinthians 1:18, 22-25; John 2:13-25)

The Ten Commandments are often viewed as obsolete and out of touch with the modern world. They are unfortunately treated as if they were the 10 suggestions rather than commandments. Even those who use them as weapons in the culture wars of our times are sometimes hard-pressed to name all of them.

Did God lift Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson’s overtime pass into the end zone in the conference final, rewarding the prayerful Christian player with a championship victory and a trip to the Super Bowl?

Millions of Americans may think so.

The great adventure continues with amazing sights under the Northern Lights in the Christmas season. My own adventures and travels are too many to put into one short Christmas letter. However, I will share a dog rescue story as the Christmas story has some four-legged creatures, too. There were cattle lowing, donkeys braying and probably a dog or two at the first Christmas in the manger of Bethlehem, where Jesus was born of Mary.

Br. Nathan Wayne had an atypical road to the religious life.

A self-described “total jock” during his high school years in Syracuse, N.Y., he was a star player on the Christian Brothers Academy basketball team, a school renowned for its athletics, and also enjoyed football and skiing.  The now 26-year-old member of the Legion of Christ credits a few committed recruiters with leading him to where he is today, serving youth across Ontario.

Is it just by coincidence that at the beginning and the end of the Bible there appears a rainbow?

Dedication of the Lateran Basilica (Year A) Nov. 9 (Ezekiel 47:1-2, 8-9, 12; Psalm 46; 1 Corinthians 3:9b-11, 16-17; John 2:13-22)

In ancient Israel the temple was a rich metaphor for the life-giving presence of God. For people of the ancient world, temples were theology books in stone. Their mathematical proportions and symbolic structures were meant to reflect divine and cosmological principles. The temple was often referred to as the navel or axis of the world.

ORANGE, Calif. - If you think singing in front of Simon Cowell would be terrifying -- well, you're not far wrong.

Sometimes, sleep doesn’t come easy. Dreams are pushed aside by worry and fretting. Counting sheep gives way to counting out real-life scenarios and possibilities late into the night. 

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Oct. 12 (Isaiah 25:6-10a; Psalm 23; Philippians 4:12-14, 19-20; Matthew 22:1-14) 

Modern people climb great mountains simply because they are there and they want to prove themselves. In the ancient world, mountains were frightening and awesome places where human beings encountered God. Isaiah painted a prophetic picture of the encounter for which so many people had yearned. 

The sawed-off four-metre wooden crucifix was carefully lowered to the ground at the entrance to the cemetery. 

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Aug. 31 (Jeremiah 20:7-9; Psalm 63; Romans 12:1-2; Matthew 16:21-27) 

We can perhaps sympathize with Jeremiah. He did not ask for the calling of a prophet — in fact, he was dragged kicking and screaming into his role as God’s mouthpiece. 

Body and Blood of Christ (Year A) June 22 (Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 14-16; Psalm 147; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; John 6:51-59) 

Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. If only it were true!