I happened upon this passage in Magnificat for the 2/18/10 readings.  It was written by St. Catherine of Siena. Oh blessed gentle Mary!  She gave us the gentle Jesus as a blossom.  And when did that blessed blossom produce fruit?  When he was engrafted onto the wood of the most holy cross— then we received [...]

Homecoming was last night.  The youngest two of my five sons looked great.  They were well groomed and each had a wonderful young lady to escort.  Everything was perfect.  Except that the youngest called home in tears early into the evening.  Things had changed.  One of their classmates (who would have been at the homecoming [...]

Surely what a man does when he is taken off his guard is the best evidence for what sort of a man he is? Surely what pops out before the man has time to put on a disguise is the truth? If there are rats in a cellar you are most likely to see them [...]

Peter Kreeft used this quotation in one of his lectures and I found it quite thought provoking. On the whole, I do not find Christians, outside of the catacombs, sufficiently sensible of conditions. Does anyone have the foggiest idea what sort of power we so blithely invoke?  Or, as I suspect, does no one believe [...]

A friend of mine has died.  I had never met Fr. Neuhaus but knew him through his various works of which First Things magazine was perhaps the best known.  Fr. Neuhaus was a prominent Catholic and a man of immense intellect.  He was a force of reason in an often unreasonable society.  He will be [...]

Christopher West of the Theology of the Body Institute has a nice piece on The Spousal Mystery of Christmas at his site which his linked here. Christmas celebrates the marvels of the birth of the Son of God from the virgin womb of Mary. At Christmas pageants, at Mass, and in beloved Christmas carols we [...]

I have been given the duty of advocating for United Way at my place of work. And I’ll do my best to increase participation among my colleagues. However, in attending some of the preparatory meetings, I asked a question about contributing to specific charities instead of making an un-designated contribution to United Way. I am [...]

The priest recently told this joke: Joe was a new Catholic going to his first confession.  He began, "Bless me Father for I have sinned.  I have been stealing lumber from my employer."  The priest asked, "How much lumber."  Joe continued, "Enough to build my house and a house for my brother."  The priest then [...]

Here’s a great example of why thoughtful Catholics must despise the Democrats as a party.  This lady is their elected speaker.  Pelosi subverts Catholic teaching publicly under the self description of an "ardent, practicing Catholic." Here’s how Archbishop Chaput has responded: Ardent, practicing Catholics will quickly learn from the historical record that from apostolic times, [...]

If I may, I’d like to ask you and your family to say a rosary for a young man with advanced cancer who, with his family, has traveled to Lourdes France this week to beseech our Holy Mother for help. Here’s a link to his blog.