As with the Holy Family, material wealth is not a prerequisite for family. Choosing what is right for the family often involves forgoing these luxuries.

As you would expect, the Holy Family receives a lot of attention during the Christmas season.

On the Feast of the Holy Family, Pope Benedict XVI prayed the Angelus with the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square and then he expounded on how the Holy Family is a model for all of us.

The Holy Father noted that a profound mystery surrounds the birth of Christ and that “the birth of any child brings with it something of this mystery.” [...]

Discussion of workplace rights often neglects the corresponding duties, but these duties are essential to right understanding of justice relative to both neighbor and God.

There is always a great deal of talk in the workplace about employee rights – what the employee is owed by the boss; whether it be more pay or time off or a more leisurely work environment.

But, how much talk is done in the workplace about the reverse question – what do employees owe to their work and to those who depend on their work?

I thought about this question when I heard the news last week out of New York City that sanitation workers orchestrated a deliberate slowdown during one of the worst blizzards in decades. They didn’t do their jobs and people suffered.[...]

How willingly do you let “Divine Uncertainty” change your plans?
This has been a challenging week, here in the UK. Most winters, we don’t get a huge amount of snow in most parts of the country, and for that reason, we don’t have the infrastructure, organisation or vehicles to deal with it.

This week we have had a lot of snow and the country has, at times, more or less ground to a halt. I had two different work projects postponed as either I or others could not travel safely; and likewise, the kids had a few days off school, when the school was closed.

Our reactions, of course, were varied.[...]

A while back, I mentioned the Work and Family Foundation Canada – a group started by friends whose goal is to promote “the healthy relationship between work and family.” The Foundation has just announced its first Families That Work Conference. It will be held in Toronto, Canada and feature Mr. James Stenson, world-renowned author and [...]

Rick discusses guiding his 10 year old son through middle school, particularly regarding purity of heart. The sacrificial decision to send his son to Catholic school is also discussed.

Ten years ago, I carried him with one arm and anticipated his first word. Ten years from now, I’ll probably drop him off in college and help him lug his crate to his dorm. And then it’ll be practically over. Except for Thanksgiving and Christmas, he’ll be out there on his own with his life and whatever I’ve done to shape it.[...]

Reflections on the sacramental nature of work, and how a father participates in both the creative and redemptive work of God.

Today in the United States and Canada we celebrate Labor Day, the symbolic close to summer. But Labor Day offers more than that. As many of us celebrate with family gatherings and enjoy the long weekend, we should take this opportunity to reflect on the role of work in the life of a Catholic father. [...]

Probably fifteen years ago now, this fellow, we’ll call him “Pete,” asked me for a quote on a printing job, his sister’s wedding invitations. He was in the industry, worked for a pre-press shop out-putting film, and he knew me as a client of the shop he worked for. So I gave him the estimate [...]

During these tough economic times, I’d like to share the Filipino secret to coping. The Philippines is like Haiti in the East.  But despite widespread poverty, Filipinos have the lowest suicide rate in Asia.  Japan, the wealthiest, has the highest.  How do Filipinos face their hard lives daily without sinking to despair?  Is it with [...]

It’s true. Those of us who sailed past the Statue of Liberty came to a country of unbelievable freedom and opportunity. America Truly is the Greatest Country in the World. Don’t Let Freedom Slip Away – After America, There is No Place to Go” Next to religious and inspirational stories, this is one of the [...]

Gentlemen: If you are getting ready to travel, I encourage you to use a new agency Fosters Travel. The agency was developed by a friend of mine. He and his wife just found out that their youngest son has a terminal disease and that while they can prolong his life into his 20s, there is no [...]