Apr

10

The Essence of What We Believe

April 10, 2008 | Leave a Comment

The Real Thing 
When I read today’s gospel, I had an “aha” moment.  I’m not a theologian, but John 6 has a verse that I have to think may just be the essence of what we believe as Catholics. 
In John 6:51, Christ is continuing the Bread of Life Discourse when he explains something that his listeners that [...]

Apr

2

More Lessons from the Biggest Loser

April 2, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Sometime ago, I wrote about the Biggest Loser and certain relationship lessons we could learn from this show.
Last night, the show got down to the final four - and throughout the night’s show, they showed before and after footage - before they were on the show and what they look like now.  The literal transformation of [...]

Apr

1

My Little Black Book

April 1, 2008 | Leave a Comment

On Sunday, I sat next to an old, distinguished man and his lovely wife.  He had a small, well-worned, stained book in his hand and was paging through it at various times during Mass. 
I was being nosy and kept looking over to see what it was.  I realized it was a prayer book with all of the important [...]

Mar

30

What is Mercy?

March 30, 2008 | Leave a Comment

As I was growing up in foster homes and an orphanage, I developed a well-honed sense of guilt and the anxiety that comes from doing something wrong.  I lived with the fear that if I screwed up, there was always the chance that I would be shipped off somewhere else.
Even after I was adopted, I couldn’t shake [...]

Mar

24

The Lenten Hangover

March 24, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Easter Sunday is past - so is Holy Week - so is Lent.  For some, it seems like months ago that Lent started - for others, it seems like yesterday.
For me - if I did Lent right - Easter Monday feels like a hangover - or maybe more like a letdown.  I guess it’s because the [...]

Mar

22

Gathering Around the Cross

March 22, 2008 | Leave a Comment

The demise of the Catholic Church has been greatly exaggerated.
How do I know?  I saw it firsthand last night.
At the evening liturgy, I watched as family after family went up to the Cross in various forms of veneration.  Family after Family!
At one point, my mind really started wandering and I looked up at Mary and [...]

Mar

20

Lock and Load - Holy Thursday is Here!

March 20, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Time to lock and load!
This is it - the highlight of our year as Christians.
Today starts the Easter Triduum - it’s Holy Thursday.
We know what today is about - go to Mass, take the kids, celebrate the Last Supper and the first Eucharist, wash the feet, prepare to fast - truly contemplate how Christ gave himself to us [...]

Mar

16

Reflections on the Passion

March 16, 2008 | Leave a Comment

As I was listening to the Passion Narrative this morning at Mass, several events struck me in ways different than the other scores of time that I have heard this passage.
- Peter, James and John couldn’t stay awake with Christ in the Garden - Judas outright betrayed him - the apostles scurried away from him [...]

Mar

4

“Do You Want to Be Well?”

March 4, 2008 | Leave a Comment

“Do you want to be well?”
It’s the question Jesus asks of the disabled man in today’s gospel (John 5). 
It’s the question Jesus asks of each of us - do we want to be well?
I tend to think that I go through life with a healthy dose of optimism balanced by an equally healthy dose of [...]

Feb

27

Pew - Good or Bad News??

February 27, 2008 | Leave a Comment

As most everyone probably knows by now, Pew just came out with a survey of 35,000 Americans detailing their religious practices.  I was especially struck by the statistic that 10% of all Americans consider themselves ex-Catholics.
I am a political junkie and often like to dive into the particulars of a poll or survey to determine the reliability [...]

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