My husband, Stephen, and I visited the National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help – now called Our Lady of Champion – in July of 2021. Although we always hoped for the opportunity to visit the Shrines at Fatima and Lourdes, we realized it may never happen. Because of...
Let’s be honest—Latin can make anything sound either incredibly profound or mildly threatening. “Nihil obstat” is one example. Say it slowly in a deep voice, quite dramatic. Really though, it’s quite a simple concept. According to the United States Conference of...
The modern world values individuality. Self-sufficiency is considered a great virtue, priding ourselves on being able to handle and accomplish things on our own. It’s a tendency, however, that takes us right back to the Garden when satan tempted our first parents to...
When you see a red octagon, I’d imagine the first word that pops into your head is “Stop!” Or when you see a check mark on a test, you can safely assume that you got the answer correct on your test. Symbols are perhaps the easiest way to convey a meaning or a...
As a dad of seven and a lifelong devotee of Our Lady, I’ve always had a soft spot for the Rosary. But something changed when I became a father. The Rosary stopped being just my prayer—it became our prayer. I began to see it not only as a lifeline for my own spiritual...
“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...
As a user of artificial intelligence technology (AI) for research and some creative tasks, and as an author and observer of the profound changes that AI will cause in our society, I will admit that I am concerned about AI. My apprehension is only partly over the more...
Some specify between a “good Catholic” and a “bad Catholic.” Some just denounce another is not a Catholic anymore because they did X or believe Z. Some are “supposed to be” Catholics but no longer practice. Some think that only Catholics who pray the rosary every day...
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?...
Happy is the soul that knows how to find Jesus in the Eucharist and the Eucharist in all things!St. Peter Julian Eymard
Some saints were famed in their day; others lived humble lives of duty. When St. Claude La Colombière died, all the chronicler wrote of him was that “there was nothing worth noting to be recorded.” Yet the holiness of his private writings, and the guidance...
“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...
There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus and said,"Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"Jesus said to him, "What is written in the law?How do you read it?"He said in reply,"You shall love the Lord, your God,with all your heart,with...
Do you desire to have a lifelong Catholic marriage? In the twenty-first century, that is a tall order. How can we be sure if we are dating someone that if we marry we will be able to persevere? How important is that perseverance thing? For a Catholic—indeed for any...
There are many beloved titles of Mary: Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of Lourdes, Our Lady of Sorrows, and even Our Lady of Champion—the only approved Marian apparition in the United States. On July 16, we turn our attention to one of the most powerful Marian titles and...
Read Part 1 of this 3-part series here. In the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus affirms the truth that prayer is ultimately a relationship of love in three simple, but deeply profound, verses. To elucidate this truth more deeply, let us examine...
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...
When a person becomes convinced of the necessity of prayer, very often they will begin by focusing on the mechanics of prayer: How do I pray and how often should I pray? Where should I pray and at what time? Whom should I pray to most, the Father, Son, or the Holy...
When my now husband, David Kruse introduced himself to me, he wanted to set up a phone call across Oceans to get my take on him starting a Catholic Record Label. I laughed and told him it was a silly idea because there’s no good Catholic music out there. Here’s what I...
Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, 1696-1787, born into wealth and influence, was initially trained as an attorney. Suddenly realizing that his interest in legal victories was greater than his interest in obtaining justice, he renounced his legal career. He pledged to...
The Our Father is our foundational prayer as Catholics. If you’re like me, you’ve said it a few times. As in, a few thousand times. Tens of thousands if you pray the Rosary or Divine Office regularly. It’s easy for something so familiar to become muscle memory and to...
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...
What did the symbol of the tongues of fire on Pentecost represent? the burning bush on Mount Sinai from which God spoke to Moses the ability to speak and proclaim the Word of God with zeal the Holy Spirit's presence, force, and transformative power All of the Above...
St. Simon Stock is a “hallowed” figure in Catholic tradition, best known for his great devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and his association with the Brown Scapular—a symbol of Marian protection and Carmelite spirituality. Born in the twelfth century in England,...
Every year on May 13, the Church honors the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima, commemorating the Blessed Mother’s appearances to three young shepherd children in Portugal in 1917. Her message was simple but powerful: pray the Rosary every day, offer sacrifices for the...