Mark Me Dear Lord PRAYER FOR THE SEVEN GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT O Lord Jesus Christ, Who, before ascending into heaven, did promise to send the Holy Spirit to finish Your work in the souls of Your Apostles and Disciples, deign to grant the same Holy Spirit to me that...
An examination of conscience is a tool that is used when preparing for making a good Confession. This tool can also be used at any time of day, but can be especially fruitful at nighttime, looking back over the day. The father is the priest of his domestic Church. He...
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...
Congrats! Your child (or godchild, niece, or nephew) received the sacrament of Confirmation, sealing them with the same Holy Spirit who moved upon the watery void of Genesis and convicted the hearts of Jesus’ disciples at Pentecost almost 2,000 years ago! ...
The word Purgatory comes from the Greek root πῦρ (“pur”) which means both “fire” and “pure.” This is a fitting description, as the fires of Purgatory, rather than destroying like the fires of Hell, instead purify. Purgatory is where we expiate for the pain due to...
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...
Gospel of John 20:19-31 On the evening of that first day of the week,when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,for fear of the Jews,Jesus came and stood in their midstand said to them, “Peace be with you.”When he had said this, he showed them his hands and...
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,...
Truly, Lent is a time to be solemn and focused on our Lord in his journey to the Cross. But as a couple, it still remains important to be united with our beloved through time together and conversation. A Lent themed date night could be a perfect combination of these...
This beautiful spoken-word piece titled “A Crucifixion Type Love” was written and performed by Brent Rice and, although (disclaimer) we don't know much about Mr. Rice and his personal religious beliefs, there is no doubt that his poetry is stunning, passionate, and a...
Read more“I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.”
Luke 15:7
"I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance."Luke 15:7 Why Should We Confess Our Sins to a Priest? Why we confess our sins to a priest? What is a...
One of the best things about the Catholic Church (which of course, there are many, many things) is the communion of saints. The wisdom and holiness of the men and women who have gone before us can guide us toward the light that is Christ. There are few areas of our...
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...
Living the natural family planning lifestyle can sometimes feel like a solo hike up a steep mountain. We start off excited, convicted (by the science and Church teaching), and as prepared as we can be for this beautiful endeavor. A few miles in, we are facing an...
Forgiveness is so hard, but why? Often, the desire for an eye for an eye overwhelms us, we want the person who hurt us to receive justice and be held accountable. But does holding on to the hurt and anger in fact accomplish our desire for justice? Again and again, I...
Natural family planning has the potential to bring out either our best or our worst traits as people and as spouses. There’s nothing quite like sacrificing our own physical desires (think along the lines of dieting or...
It is estimated that 1 in 6 couples struggle to get pregnant. Infertility is often a hidden suffering, and is even considered a “normal,” albeit temporary, difficulty encountered in some marriages, but easily fixed if the couple...
Every year over a million children experience the divorce of their parents, and at least one-quarter of all young adults are children of divorce. And those numbers grow when you include people whose parents never married but later split up, or those whose parents...
Called to Conversion We are all called to conversion. This was a fundamental part of the proclamation of the kingdom of God and the Gospel. The first call to Christ and His Gospel leads us to Baptism in which we receive “the...
No little baby needs a ‘trigger warning’, not even a baby lost to miscarriage. But I do want to give a note here that I cover some very gritty realities of miscarriage in the following article, especially discussing burial...
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen teaches in his Book of Sacraments (Sophia Institute Press) that there are two sacraments of healing: one for spiritual illness, which is the Sacrament of Penance; the other for physical illness,...
Since Pope Francis became pope, the way of life and the spirituality of Franciscans have received closer attention. With the pope’s announcement of the Year of St. Joseph, there has been even more focus on the spiritual life of...
God, I’ll do anything you want, just don’t ask me to be a Sister (or a Priest)! That was the first thing both of us thought when we found ourselves pursuing God’s plan for our lives. We were ready to do something radical and bring Christ’s love to a needy world, but...
What are Sacramentals? "Holy Mother Church has, moreover, instituted sacramentals. These are sacred signs which bear a resemblance to the sacraments. They signify effects, particularly of a spiritual nature, which are obtained through the intercession of the Church....
oday's video could be useful for illustrating the daily quarrels that we can all relate to. Although I myself am not married and am on my way towards the priesthood, more than once I have witnessed –with a bit of awe to be honest–the surprising...