Hey there, What do you think of when you hear the word mercy? Mercy me! Have mercy! Beg for mercy. I watch a lot of sports so I think of the ole mercy rule … where a game is stopped when one team scores a lot of runs on the other team. Merriam-Webster defines mercy as: “Compassion or forbearance … shown especially to an offender or to one subject to one’s power.” Whatever comes …
The Spiritual Powers of Almsgiving
Hey there, Of the three pillars of Lent -- prayer, fasting, and almsgiving -- it’s the latter that gets the least amount of attention. Truly understanding what it’s all about is something I’ve taken for granted over the years. So before this Lent ended, I wanted to focus our attention on this important Lenten activity. Monetary donations are typically associated with almsgiving, but it …
Reignite Your Light With The Presentation of The Lord
Hey there, In ancient Greece the runner that won the race was not the man who crossed the line in the shortest time … it was the man who crossed it in the least time with his torch still burning. Like those Greek runners, we Catholics carry a light in us that we are called to share with others. Yesterday, February 2nd, we celebrated that light in the Church. It was the Feast of the …
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Uncharted Times Call For Brotherly Love
Hey there, No doubt we are living in uncharted times. The worldwide pandemic has touched each of us, altering some aspects … if not all aspects of our lives. Then throw in the November election and ... if we wrote this as a Hollywood script, they would say it’s too far fetched. Everywhere you turn, we are pitted against each other. BLM vs. Back the blue. Mask vs. …
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Getting to Know (And Celebrate) Our Lady of Loreto
Hey there, One way we like to record history is to recognize places where historical events or otherwise memorable events happened. It’s not uncommon to see historical markers on the side of the road when travelling around the highways and roads of the United States. We mark birthplaces or homesteads that belonged to historical figures, and places where memorable events happened. Even …
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Finding Joy in Advent (Especially During Coronavirus)
Hey there, I suspect we can all agree on one thing … 2020 can’t end quickly enough. We’ve spent most of this year in the grips of the Coronavirus pandemic. Sickness … and even death. Lockdowns and quarantines. No public Masses. And who can forget the toilet paper shortages. Fortunately, we Catholics get an early jump on the new year. This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent … …
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Presenting The Blessed Virgin Mary (And Why She Matters)
Hey there, It’s no surprise Mary plays a major role in Catholicism … after all, without Mary there would be no Jesus. But would it surprise you to hear we have 19 Marian celebrations in our Liturgical Calendar? 3 of them are Holy Days of Obligation. Lest you think I exaggerate, here they are: January 1 Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God* January 8 The Feast of Our Lady of …
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Understanding Purgatory And Our Relationship With The Holy Souls
Hey there, As Catholics we share a common goal to go to heaven. And we understand that when our time on Earth is finished, we likely will spend time in an interim transition called purgatory before we enter heaven. This is a good time to look at purgatory because November is four days away. It’s the month the Catholic Church dedicates to the Holy Souls in Purgatory. We will celebrate All …
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The (After)Life-Saving Powers of Holy Water
Hey there, What covers 71% of the Earth and makes up 60% of your body? I’m sure you know, the answer is water. Water is essential to life with the average human only lasting about 3 days without it. There are countless studies on the number of glasses of water we should drink every day. Water is also a sacramental prominently used in the Catholic Church. We are cleansed of our sins …
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How And Why we Exalt The Holy Cross
Hey there, Crosses have become a common part of our everyday life. We decorate our houses with them. We wear crosses and crucifixes as jewelry. They are on books and clothes and car windows. We see them all around our neighborhoods and cities. Has the cross become so ingrained in our life that we don’t often think about what it really stands for? If you’re like me, the answer is a …
Fulfilling Your Duty in The Catholic Church
Hey there, As the Coronavirus pandemic opened up in our communities, our Church doors were slammed shut. And we yearned for what we once took a little for granted. We attended Mass virtually and prayed the Act of Spiritual Communion. Some waged battles to re-open their Church, even taking the issue up with the courts. And a few Priests defied the law by holding public Masses. Some of …
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Is Temperance Making a Comeback?
Hey there, There’s a lifestyle movement that's been growing in popularity for several years called Minimalism. It’s the idea that less is more. Clean out those closets. Get rid of all the excess clutter. Own fewer possessions. You’ve probably seen the hype about the tiny house movement as well. People are moving into 100 to 400 square foot homes. Then there’s the occasional Smart Car you see …
