Category: Features

The life of the other St Francis

Fr Adrian Crowley   St Francis of Paola was born in 1416 in the south of Italy. His parents were childless and prayed fervently to St Francis of Assisi for a child. In thanksgiving they named their son Francis. At birth the boy had a serious eye infection, and his mother once again prayed to…

St Paul’s ‘conversion’

From the late Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI General Audience at the Paul VI Audience Hall on September 3, 2008.   Dear Brothers and Sisters, Today’s Catechesis is dedicated to the experience that Paul had on his way to Damascus, and therefore on what is commonly known as his conversion. It was precisely on the road…

A family’s journey of Faith

When a relative asked me to write about my family’s Catholic background, it felt like an adventure into the unknown. I’ve always been curious about our past, and this seemed like the perfect excuse to dig into the stories that shaped us. What I found was a tapestry of faith, family, and history that goes…

In Christ’s hands, miracles abound

Who couldn’t use a miracle right about now? After weeks of parties and packages, planning and platters, the world returns to something vaguely normal. Our waistlines are bigger, and our to-do lists are smaller. Christmas is in the rear-view mirror. The trees have been tossed to the curb. The lights have burned out. The toys…

A view from the Quays

“He was amazed at their lack of faith.” What a sentence! It was said two thousand years ago but could be said today. Jesus did beautiful things, he did great things, but all as people could say was “who does he think he is – sure he’s just but a carpenter.” Isn’t it extraordinary that…