Who Was St. Jude? Judas Thaddeus is often known in Greek as simply “Thaddeus” because this is the name used in the Gospels according to St. Matthew and St. Mark. When translators were putting the books of the Bible into English, they sought to distant this Apostle we...
We are living in unprecedented times. The tension has become palpable. You can see it on our roads, in stores, even within our churches – people are stressed beyond belief. We live with the media shouting their respective agendas at us 24/7 – pandemic, civil unrest,...
Having a bad day? They happen. Sometimes more frequently than we want them to. However, no one is or should choose to be defined by their bad days. Rather, they should be defined by their Christian perseverance in faith, hope, and charity through difficult moments....
“After a lot of thought and it was a very hard decision, unfortunately, we have to make you redundant.” Those are words that rank up there with “you’ve tested positive for coronavirus” that no person wants to hear. A second virus is now raging a war on us and that is...
It’s a running joke that since the pandemic started, our pairs of jeans haven’t seen the light of day. In fact, we may not even have gotten out of pajamas before schooling children, working remotely, and keeping up with a house when everyone is always home. It’s...
I wish I had always known God’s loving tenderness. I have been a Catholic all my life but it was only a year ago that I discovered a God who loves us with such magnitude that not only is He powerful, He is also tender, as a terrified new father, who stands in by the...
Have you been fasting this Lent? Sure, it's a struggle, but this ancient, scriptural, necessary Christian discipline is something Jesus expected and which Catholics for hundreds of years took as a given. (Check out our Illustrated Guide to Fasting) You're not supposed...
If you think Saint costumes are boring, think again! Check out these gory, gruesome, and horrifying costumes that will have your friends talking all night long. It's an interesting way to evangelize, but it just might work. Saint Ursula - The princess saint who was...
Through my three pregnancy losses, I have been absolutely blown away by my amazing community of family and friends. I am in awe of the loving strength and selfless support that is given by so many people around me, male and female, old and young, close friends and...
This week on the podcast we talk about service through suffering. In the first reading Alanna connects the symbolism of the story to the symbolism of the New Testament. Service in suffering under the "tree" brings forth fruit, and new life. Abraham serves God with a...
This week on the podcast we go over the entrance into Jerusalem and the problem of suffering in our faith life. How our Baptism, or conversion, is a joyful entrance in to the life of faith, but it is the suffering of the cross that is our path to unity with God. In...
This week on the livestream Fr Ian and Alanna go down the rabbit hole of Blessings and Woes in the Old Testament Covenant and the argument found in the wisdom literature about how bad things happen to good people. The second reading on the resurrection brings us to...
This week we talk about the Suffering Servant, Christ who suffers for us so we can find Him in our own suffering. He has been tested so we can follow Him in our own testing. We bring in movies and sports to express stories and human tendencies. Should we strive for...
When we go through moments of pain and difficulty, it is easy to blame God or feel abandoned by Him, so in this post, I want to talk about those moments in which pain makes us feel confused. When I was about seven years old, I was playing at home, running, until I...
“Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy.” - Jeremiah 15:16 What in life seems incomprehensible, many times comes to reveal itself as utterly essential. There are transitions we make in life without realizing it, transitions marked by...
With all the evil and suffering in the world, how does the less than twenty hours of the Passion of our Lord atone for all of the evil of human history? Many new Christians hear the saving message that Christ died to save them upon the Cross. But, how exactly does...
Growing up, I ticked of all the ‘weird kid’ qualities. Bookworm? Tick. Shy Catholic girl? Big tick. Facial scarring? Tick. Scar from open-heart surgery? Tick. You know how everyone gets known for something for in highschool? Try being known as that weird kid who...
If you're not yet familiar with the story of Austin Hatch, you will be. This young man is on the path to greatness. Not because of what he's doing, but because of the way he is letting God work within him. Austin is a survivor of not one, but two fatal plane...
The most comprehensive List Of Saints Who Never Suffered, Faced Trials, Or Experienced Temptation. Ask the Saints to interceded for you and get to know their stories! You'll be glad you did. A List Of Saints Who Never Suffered, Faced Trials, Or Experienced Temptation...
"One of life's greatest scandals is pain." - Archbishop Fulton Sheen In the midst of pain and suffering, it can be tempting to fall into despair and feel as though God does not see what we are going through. In this powerful video produced by Thing In A Pot...
One of the things we say when referring to Jesus, is that we call Him our Redeemer. We do this because Jesus died on the cross to pay the debt that came to be on account of our sin. By His death and resurrection, He won us freedom from the bondage that comes about...
"For so long, I kept things to myself and refused to open up because I didn't want to burden people with my problems and because I didn't think anyone would understand what I was going through. I was so wrong. No matter who you are, no matter what you're struggling...
One of the most “thumbed-up” comments for this video reads: “18k priests disliked this video.” Given the cursing, vulgarity, and out-right rebellion before God and the Christian faith it might seem obvious. (Viewer discretion is advised!) Still I think Hopsin's...
I frequently get mad at God (maybe more than I should?... I don’t know whether there's a reasonable limit to these things). The thing is, I used to think it wasn’t okay, that it meant my faith and love were weak. Little by little, with the Holy Spirit’s help, I’ve...
Did you ever wish that the The Sound of Music was real? The heroes /heroines, the nuns saving lives, the incredible family? Did it inspire endless daydreams about what you would do if you'd lived in Europe during WWII? The musical was based on the book Sound of Music...