An excerpt from Eight Promises of God: Discovering Hope Through the Beatitudes What moves us and troubles us? What do we mourn? Let us reflect whether we mourn sin and its effects in the world. First of all, let’s look at sin. Our own personal sin and corporate sin is...
“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” – Luke 9:23-24 Stories are often told about the great and the...
At one point in my life, I habitually judged and resented certain people. I have confessed it once, twice, and numerous times. Each time I felt His forgiveness, I would tell myself I would do better. “I can forgive and I will not judge.” Lo and behold, I saw the...
Most people never think about the morality of their money. Our use of dollars, euros, or yen is simply "the way things are"—background elements of economic life, like the weather. But what if I told you that a form of money itself can be profoundly moral or immoral?...
“God created man in the image of Himself, in the image of God He created him, male and female He created them.”— Genesis 1:27 Created In The Image Of God In the Genesis creation story, God created man in His image. You must be thinking, what is that image of God that...
I know the phrase “made in the image of God” gets tossed around a lot in Christian circles, but do we truly understand what it means or feel its weight in our lives? From the very beginning, we’re told, “God created man in his own image…male and female he created...
What you are about to read is my story, my journey, my destination, and my heaven on earth. I have been a secular Discalced Carmelite since the spring of 1988, living in the world, and spending the last 49 years as either a social worker or teaching in Catholic...
Creighton, Billings, Marquette, Boston Cross Check, FEMM. How do couples know what to choose! Well, first off, let’s dive into what NFP is and what it is not. NFP stands for Natural Family Planning, which is a Church-approved method of preventing or planning a...
Michael Schattle spent his adult life as a missionary — first, in a traditional sense, as a FOCUS Catholic missionary, then, through active involvement in young adult communities. At the age of thirty-three, on December 2, 2024, Michael died unexpectedly. In...
In nearly 15 years of clinical psychology, it’s hard to imagine just how many people have expressed a deep longing to tangibly feel loved by God – to be able to truly rest in His presence. One of the main obstacles to experiencing the kind of peace that emerges...
I met a guy who’s not Catholic, but he’s Christian. He’s really nice and loves Jesus, and we agree on most things. Should I date him? This, or some variation of it, is one of the most common questions I get asked as a speaker and author of a book on Catholic dating....
We live in a culture obsessed with beauty, yet often confused about its true nature. Magazines flaunt airbrushed images, social media feeds overflow with filtered selfies, and the pursuit of physical perfection can become all-consuming. But what is true beauty?...
For many of us, the thought of Hell is like a bad dream—so disturbing that we avoid thinking about it. But the saints didn’t shy away. They frequently meditated on the Four Last Things: death, judgment, Heaven, and Hell. Some were even given the extraordinary grace of...
You are having coffee in the morning with a friend, and she asks a question about how to be happy in the everyday events of one’s life. The conversation evolves to looking at the life of a very inspiring woman. Venerable Catherine McAuley founded the Religious Sisters...
Watching my son arrange dinosaurs during Mass—his way of staying regulated—reminds me how far our Catholic family has come on our autism journey. What once felt impossible has become a chance to witness the Church embracing all her members, including those on the...
Jesus teaches, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matt 5:27-28) Pope St. John Paul the Great commented in one of his...
Jesus said:“My sheep hear my voice;I know them, and they follow me.I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.No one can take them out of my hand.My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all,and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand.The...
I’ve always wondered why in the world God wants us to worship Him. It never quite made sense to me that a loving God would possess an ego so big that He’d ask His kids to fall down at his feet. But then, one day, I heard an analogy that made at least a bit of sense....
When our son Nathan was in the second year at his Lutheran preschool, my wife and I decided that the large classes and busy hallways of public schools weren’t right for him. Nathan was the quiet kid. He’d sit in the corner and play by himself, anxious to learn...
The Five Holy Wounds of Christ The Five Holy Wounds of Christ refer to the wounds Jesus suffered during His Crucifixion—one in each hand, one in each foot, and one in His side. These wounds are a profound reminder of His immense love and sacrifice for humanity....
I’ve been asked more times than I can count whether I’m an introvert or an extrovert. I love going to parties, meeting new people, and public speaking. I also crave a long, silent walk in the woods alone, and I am a voracious reader. I adore silent retreats, as if...
When you think of influential Catholics, you probably immediately think canonized saints. Not only are there more saints in heaven than we would be able to canonized—or even know by name—but there are many influential Catholics from around the world that we might not...
Marriage is a sacred journey that doesn't end at the altar—it's just beginning. As my wife and I approach our wedding anniversary, I've realized that maintaining the "dating mindset" is crucial for nurturing a healthy Catholic marriage. Just as a garden requires...
What Is Spiritual Reading? Spiritual reading consists of reading something that explains some aspect of Catholic truth in an attractive, enriching way. Its function is to help reinforce and deepen our Christian view of ourselves and the world around us. In previous...
I might as well admit something about prayer from the very start: sometimes when I read a formal prayer, from memory or with a prayer book, I find my mind wandering. Somehow, I can’t always keep my mind focused. For times like these, I sometimes...