The word virtue suggests something strong, but also difficult. Virtue is a good habit that makes you good. It also makes your life easier, because, just like any habit, as you grow in it, you do it more easily, almost unconsciously. Contrary to the modern view,...
“Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name…” Luke 24:35-48 What Did Jesus Actually Accomplish By Dying And Rising From The Dead? Most of us...
Habits for Holiness with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames of the CFRs
“You are what you eat.” This popular phrase is usually related to eating healthy food, but some have raised the question as to whether this applies to eating the Body and Blood of Christ[JR1] . When I first heard someone connect the two several years ago, I wondered...
Modeling our lives after those of the saints can sometimes feel like a formidable task. We count the ways it seems impossible in the 21st century. We examine the actions of the holiest saints and wonder how we could ever compare. We’re juggling so many balls as it...
Thirst and Perfection God thirsts for you. He desires you and He loves you. This thirst is universal and extends to every beloved created person. The Church shows forth this love of God for us and beckons us to be like Him. Regardless of our own state in life, our...
Everyone struggles with something. A root sin, a set of bad habits, some sort of fear, something that causes undue anxiety, etc. Many (most?) of us struggle with many such things. So what does a person do? Drew Taylor and I sat down recently to discuss this topic, and...
Doug Tooke - “The Perfection of Imperfection This post was inspired by Doug Tooke’s Talk: “The Perfection of Imperfection.” This Talk is featured in the OSV Talks series, a series of topics from prominent Catholic leaders to spark discussion, explore new or re-explore...
We are in Lent – a season of renewal, a season of “leaning in,” a season of surrendering more and more. Lent is a sacred and beautiful season. What I’d like to propose is that Lent is a great time to focus on “living intentionally” – essentially “living on purpose.”...
“I’m going to take a pregnancy test!” I shouted across the apartment to my husband as I anxiously walked into our bathroom to find out if I was having phantom pregnancy symptoms or if I was in fact carrying another life inside of me. I was bracing myself...
God created you as a man. He created you as a son. He desires your heart, soul, and strength. Above all else, He calls you to embrace your identity as a child of the Father, as coheir with the Son and empowered by the Spirit. He calls you to be set apart from the...
God created you as a man. He created you as a son. He desires your heart, soul, and strength. Above all else, He calls you to embrace your identify as child of the Father, as coheir with the Son, and empowered by the Spirit. He calls you to be set apart from the...
The novena is a Catholic practice of prayer that’s done over the course of nine days. Its practice goes back to the time of the apostles. The first novena can be attributed to when they got together to pray, after the Ascension waiting for the coming of the Holy...
Did you know there are several married Saints? As our society likes to frequently remind us, marriage is no easy task. To live out the vocation of marriage requires a great deal of self-sacrifice and self-discipline. In the Sacrament of Marriage, both the husband...
These Saints who were friends discovered that the experience of authentic friendship is a real treasure. It is, as Elredo de Rieval said, "the homeland of those in exile, the wealth of the poor, the medicine of the sick, the grace of the healthy, the strength of the...
I was fourteen years old and mad at my parents. They were wasting a whole day of our French vacation driving a four hour round trip to the Basilica of St. Therese of Lisieux. The car was uncomfortable, it was a perfect hot sunny day and I didn’t want to go. All I knew...
I remember a day when I woke up and decided I was going to be holy. Sounds good, doesn’t it? The problem was, I didn’t think I could be holy enough as myself. So I looked at the people around me who I felt were holy and tried to be like them. Of course, it was a...
”For in truth we are not called once only, but many times; all through our life Christ is calling us. He called us first in Baptism; but afterwards also; whether we obey His voice or not, He graciously calls us still. If we fall from our Baptism, He calls us to...
“In what does your life consist except two things: (1) Active duties; and (2) passive circumstances. The first is under your control; do these in God’s name. The second is outside your control; these submit to in God’s name. Consider only the present; leave the past...
In today’s world, everyone has an excuse as to why they can’t be involved in their Church, serve the poor, or spend time in prayer. They are either too busy, too tired, too old, or too young. Yet, God calls us to serve Him no matter what our schedules look like or...
Is it difficult for you to leave a project unfinished if you have to change activities? Are you unable to delegate work because you think that nobody can do it better than you? Do you have to wake up an hour early every morning to try on a thousand shirts before...
In our modern world, it is essential to have role models of women who exhibit virtues and willingly embrace the joys and challenges of motherhood. We are fortunate that our Church has many Saints who were also mothers and can inspire us to live out our vocation with...
Handle with Care combines factual information with parenting experiencing to take a light-hearted look at how to care for a newborn baby. A Deeper Look at Being a Parent Of course, if anyone thought parenting was a matter of completing a checklist like this one,...
Saints aren't born saints, they are forged in fire. They all started small, very small. Like you or me, they were once babies, children. They cried, whined, spurted food in embarrassing ways, needed diaper changes, etc. They were fragile and vulnerable. Their...
Today’s video is the story of a woman who had been paralyzed from the neck down. It would take her countless hours of physical rehabilitation and effort to regain her basic capacity to walk. It is a story that sparks hope in the heart and opens up horizons that...