Some people like to think of life as a journey, an adventure, a pilgrimage, a blank slate, a beach, a work of art … a box of chocolates. But life isn’t always that neutral, is it? Sometimes we are dealt a rough hand from the earliest moments of our existence. Sometimes life is filled with pain and obstacles. We are free to look at life however we want, but one thing is for sure: Life is a battle, and no one gets to sit on the sidelines.

Are you “hopelessly devoted”? No, not to your crush, your boyfriend/girlfriend or spouse, but to the Most High God?

Are you struggling with the rosary? Struggling with praying the rosary? You are not alone. Many Catholics feel super guilty for not praying the rosary very much or at all.

Have you heard of “The Warning” (aka “The Illumination of Consciences”)?

It can be difficult, these days, not to become crabby, bitter and divisive. Every day, we receive so much that frightens or angers us, and seems to threaten our very being. 

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Aug. 29 (Year B) Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-8; Psalm 15; James 1:17-18, 21-22, 27; Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

The teaching of Deuteronomy left no wiggle room at all.

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time, Aug. 22 (Year B) Joshua 24:1-2a, 15-17,18b; Psalm 34; Ephesians 4:32-5:1-2, 21-32; John 6:53, 60-69

Each day, billions of people on this planet make choices. Some of them are quite mundane — what to have for dinner or what to wear. For far too many, these are not choices — it is a matter of having something, anything, to eat or wear.

I love hell. Let me qualify that. Hell is a great motivator, perhaps the greatest motivator. But shouldn’t love be our greatest motivation? Certainly, but hell is a great backup when we’re feeling less than virtuous.

Congratulations on navigating another year of school burdened with COVID-19 adversity. I cannot understate that kids, teens, young adults and mature students alike all deserve to bask in the glow of summer vacation.

Sometimes I imagine what it might have been like for people at the foot of the cross as Jesus’ body was taken down, wrapped in linens and spices, and taken away to the tomb.

Although spirituality is at the core of religion, physical objects are inherent to its history and current functioning. 

Five minutes into a recent online retreat, I felt myself going spiritually backwards.

Most Holy Trinity, May 30 (Year B) Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40; Psalm 33; Romans 8:14-17; Matthew 28:16-20

How do we know that God exists? For many, belief is difficult. Rationalism and scientism have taken their toll, and the actual awareness of God is lacking in many lives. But the ancient Israelites were in a different position: They had seen and experienced the mighty and wondrous deeds of God on their behalf.

Holding, as an attribute of God, sort of fell out of the sky for me this month. I was looking out the window with wonder at just how many stars we can see without leaving the city in this new-to-us, small(er) city we now call home. As I juggle all the new things, I wondered why I hadn’t thought of it before. The Creator of the Universe is holding time and space in an eternal trajectory.

Ascension of the Lord, May 16 (Year B) Acts 1:1-11; Psalm 47; Ephesians 1:17-23; Mark 16:15-20

When is the Lord going to return and fix our broken world? Christians have been asking that question for 2,000 years — in fact, the failure of Jesus to return quickly was a major issue for the first Christ-followers.