I love Lent. But it was not always like that. As a kid, my whole understanding of Lent was shaped by the commandment: Thou shalt give up something that you love.
Columnists
My impression is that many people today think we live in unprecedented and negative times. They feel afraid as they watch ideologies make bold moves for economic and political power. In a certain basic sense, it is hard for me to agree that our times are unprecedented. The Church must struggle in every age, and we just don’t have that divine vision which would allow us to compare, definitively or apocalyptically, our own age with any other. On the other hand, I can easily understand the feeling that things are urgent; after all, these are our times, and so we are, quite rightly, sensitive to their dramatic character.
The sacrament of reconciliation – sometimes called confession or penance — brings us into communion with God. Through the sacrament of reconciliation, our relationship with God is restored and we become united with His grace.
This Christmas I had the very edifying experience of attending for the first time a celebration of Las Posadas.
Nicknamed the “professor pope,” Benedict XVI lived a life devoted to placing the truth in the service of love. A keen defender and teacher of the church’s doctrines, he had a deep confidence that the truths handed down by Jesus Christ would never detract from our ability to carry out his commandment to love. Rather, they would help us fulfill it.
In online conversations you cannot run away from strangers if your task is to evangelize and change hearts. If you only preach to people who already agree with you, you may only be maintaining the status quo.
For centuries, the veneration of Our Lady of Guadalupe has stood as a profound testament to the convergence of religious dedication and cultural identity within the Latino Catholic community and the greater American Catholic church. Rooted in the Virgin Mary’s apparition to a peasant native of Mexico, Juan Diego, the celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is more than a religious tradition as it now has become a vibrant cultural tapestry, lovingly woven by our Mother and her Son, that continues to be a guiding light for the lost ‘truth seekers’ who yearn for peace, truth, and beauty in the midst of a broken, chaotic world.
The Office of Evangelization, Catechesis and Family Life this fall offered two formation opportunities to train catechists, coordinators, and directors who are helping youth candidates for the sacrament of confirmation.
In a special way during Advent, we unite ourselves in prayer with the sentiments of the Blessed Mother who in silent waiting carried the hidden Savior within her womb for nine months. Mary in turn intercedes for us, as faith, hope, and joy are born again in our hearts as we wait expectantly for the birth of her Son.
One of the most anticipated holidays in America is Thanksgiving. The fourth Thursday of November every year (and its accompanying weekend) is eagerly anticipated, not only because it is a holiday set aside for a day called Thanksgiving Day, but also because it gives the opportunity for many people to rest and be with family or friends for a long weekend.