Living in Utah, it was only a matter of time before an LDS (Mormon) missionary came knocking on our door. They were very kind, but the conversation quickly moved on to more "ultimate" things. I was honest and said, "I could never leave the Catholic faith because I...
This is the third installment of our series on bringing children to adoration as part of a response to the USCCB’s call for a Eucharistic Revival. In the first part of the series, we looked at why it is both appropriate and important for children to go to adoration....
Welcome to the second part of our series on bringing children to adoration. In case you missed it, the first part is here. In the first part, we established that not only is it acceptable to bring children before the Lord in adoration, it is, in fact, encouraged....
How can billions of men and women believe that what their eyes see as bread is God? How can sane people support the claim by the Catholic Church according to which, at Holy Mass, bread becomes the Body of Jesus, and wine becomes His Blood? The Church teaches that the...
This year, the USCCB has announced a three-year Eucharistic Revival. The goal of the revival is to draw people to the Eucharist, the source and summit of our faith. A significant way that this call for revival is being lived out is through an increase in Eucharistic...
What but as bread, This appears to beIs You, Lord, it’s truly TheeIt is You, Lord, I now receiveThis is true, not just because I believeMy belief cannot createCan’t sew a seed, give man a mateCan’t fashion out of dustOne who knows You, merciful and justAlone, I am...
On June 19, 2022, the Feast of Corpus Christi, the United States Council of Catholic Bishops will begin a three-year focus on the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist that is intended to be a National Eucharistic Revival! There will be many resources made...
Struggling to Believe in the Eucharist? If you are Catholic and struggling to believe in the Church’s teaching on the Eucharist, you are not alone. A Pew Research Center survey suggests: “… nearly seven-in-ten Catholics (69%) say they personally believe that during...
The Feast of Corpus Christi on June 19, 2022, will mark a special moment in Eucharistic devotion for the United States. The USCCB will launch a multi-year Eucharistic revival which will culminate in a National Eucharistic Congress. Throughout the next three years,...
I’m somewhat ashamed to say, this story didn’t happen until I was about halfway through seminary: It was my first Christmas in Italy. After three years in the seminary in the United States, I had been sent to the North American College Seminary in Rome for the last...
Incense – A Long History Incense has been used in sacred worship for over five thousand years. Long before Christian worship began burning fragrant aromas in liturgy, the Egyptians began using incense in a religious way during the Fifth Dynasty, between 2494 and 2345...
“Parousia: The Bible and the Mass” We are proud to share with you a phenomenal Bible study series at the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology called “Parousia: The Bible and the Mass” hosted by Dr. Scott Hahn. Beautifully presented, impeccably edited, with masterful...
The eternal debate: receive the Eucharist on the tongue or in the hands? The great debates Catholics get into can be rather heated (and honestly quite entertaining at times), but let's start with this - Receiving the Eucharist on your tongue vs. in your hands isn't...
Since 1264, the Feast of Corpus Christi is celebrated on the Thursday following the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity. Catholics across the world will commemorate this day with a Eucharistic procession through their city. If your parish doesn't do this, consider finding...
When choosing songs for a personal or community time of Adoration, look for those that bring glory and honor to Our Lord, lead us into a deeper knowledge of Him, and help us become more aware of the presence of God. Our Catholic-Link team has come up with a...
Meditation for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ “These things, brothers and sisters, are called Sacraments, for in them on thing is seen while another is signified.” - Saint Augustine. The famous psychologist, Zygmunt Bauman, said that getting...
The first time I visited the Blessed Sacrament, I was eight years old. I did it in the context of the preparation for my First Communion. The sister who was preparing us told us with much reverence and passion that inside the tabernacle was the door to Heaven. At...
Maybe, you've seen our posts about the benefits of Adoration or heard some of your Catholic friends talk about "going to Adoration," but you still don't really understand what that means. That's ok! Though the practice of Adoration has been a part of the Catholic...
The Eucharist is described in the Catechism as the ‘source and summit’ of our faith. Finding the time to go to Adoration can be difficult. But if you can make it happen, committing to regular Adoration with an open heart can have some surprising results. While they...
The True Presence of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist is one of the greatest mysteries of our Catholic faith. It is something that can be very difficult for us to understand. How does what appears to be a piece of bread and a cup of wine become the Body and Blood of our...
In today's Gospel reflection, Father Ian VanHeusen presents a spiritual exercise for the Feast of Corpus Christi based on John 6:51-58 St. Ignatius of Loyola explains, “By the term “Spiritual Exercises” is meant every method of examination of conscience, of...
I can almost feel the disapproving glares of the parishioners behind me burning holes in the back of my head, but I don’t dare turn and look. I am sitting on the floor at the front of the adoration chapel with my three energetic children, making a desperate attempt at...
One of the most fruitful yet daunting experiences in my life has been Eucharistic Adoration. Just a few years ago, I would often marvel at how some people could sit before the Blessed Sacrament and get lost in the experience. Meanwhile, I was scratching my head trying...
Spiritual communion is a great way to cultivate our love for Christ in the Eucharist for those times when we can’t make it to Daily Mass for a variety of reasons (no priest, something unexpected, weather, job, sickness, etc.). It is important to note that a spiritual...
“God was not content with giving us His only Son once for all, willing Him to take flesh in the womb of a Virgin - flesh like ours, so that He might suffer and die for us on the Cross - but He wished Him to remain with us forever, perpetuating His real presence and...