Deacon Greg Kandra Ez 18:25-28 Ps 25:4-5, 6-7, 8-9 Phil 2:1-11 Phil 2:1-5 (alternate) Mt 21:28-32 This Sunday’s Gospel offers us an idea a lot of us need to hear: “It’s not too late. Any of us, if we choose, can follow another path.” Telling the story of two sons who made two different…
It can help to have a plan of action for parish closure in these trying times, writes Susan Erschen Fewer priestly vocations. Shrinking Catholic populations. An influx of immigrants bringing with them different religious traditions. Aging Church structures that need cost-prohibitive repairs. These are just a few of the reasons parishes throughout the western world…
David Mills You want to start a vigorous discussion among Catholics, make a definitive statement about what ‘good worship’ is. Be as specific as possible. Every level of detail will double the emotional investment other Catholics will be feeling. Arguments Which is to say: Don’t do that. It won’t get you anywhere, it won’t change…
Jaymie Stuart Wolfe With all the talk about ChatGPT, and Pope Francis’ ongoing criticism of bad preaching, a dark question crossed my mind: What if the homilies we heard at Mass were composed by artificial intelligence? Would they be better than what the average Catholic hears in the average parish every Sunday, or somehow, even…
Jenna Marie Cooper Apparitions such as Fatima and Lourdes, along with mystical writings of various visionary saints such as St Faustina’s diary, are considered “private revelations”. This is as opposed to “public revelation,” which is the Word of God contained in Sacred Scripture as it has been interpreted by the Church’s teaching authority down through…
You have made us for yourself, Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you. No single line, outside of Scripture, has ever spoken to me as powerfully, as persistently, and as hauntingly, as that line from St Augustine. In essence, it’s Augustine’s life story – and the story of each of our…
Jem Sullivan Is 55:6-9 Ps 145:2-3, 8-9, 17-18 Phil 1:20c-24, 27a Mt 20:1-16a The paradox we encounter in Gospel parables is meant to open us up to a deeper understanding of who God is and who we are in relationship to God. To unpack the deeper meaning of the parable takes time, reflection and silence.…
The beatification of an unborn baby has raised interesting questions for theologians, writes Maria Wiering When the Ulma family was beatified September 10 as martyrs who gave their lives to protect Jews during the Holocaust, it may be the first time the Catholic Church has beatified an entire, specific family together, as well as the first beatification…
David Mills A friend of Dorothy Day’s told her that her children had called Peter Maurin “ragged and unkempt”. They were sure “that he never bathed, and he seemed to sleep in his clothes”. When Day asked him why he didn’t try to look better, he told her, “So as not to excite envy”. Maurin,…
Silvio Cuellar In today’s world, we are surrounded by constant noise and distractions. At home, we are always connected to media such as smartphones, computers, television and tablets. In the car, we are also saturated by noise and radio programs with commentary often inappropriate for our children’s ears. How do we bring some peace into…
Fr Ronald Rolheiser