The Oscars are associated with glitz but the films on show depict human dignity in a variety of ways, writes Sr Hosea Rupprecht Awards season is particularly exciting for a film reviewer. I enjoy talking about the stunning work of actors, editors, directors, writers, make-up artists, composers and others. But as a Catholic film…
David Spesia Jesus’ entire existence was Eucharistic. If you and I are going to live as his disciples and respond wholeheartedly to the gift of his grace, our lives need to be marked by a Eucharistic dynamic. Dynamic This Eucharistic dynamic is as simple as it is profound. It emerges most clearly on the night…
Effie Caldarola As a small child, I was a bit of a religious nerd. I’m not sure why, but I was the oldest child, the only daughter, and our little Catholic mission parish in farm country was central to our lives. From a young age, faith intrigued me. Case in point: I remember taking…
I recently finished reading John Mark Comer’s new book Practicing the Way – Be with Jesus; Become like him; Do as he did. By way of a recommendation, I offer a series of sound bytes from the book which I hope will give you a nice taste of both the language and substance of…
Jem Sullivan The sacred events of Holy Week beg the question: Why did Jesus, the Son of God, have to suffer a cruel, unjust death on a cross? Was Jesus’ suffering the only means by which humanity could be reconciled to friendship with God? Jesus was obedient to the point of death, even death on…
Q: If our Orthodox brothers and sisters have a valid celebration of the Eucharist, can the same be said of the Polish National Catholic Church (PNCC)? Given your logic about the Orthodox churches a few weeks ago, it would seem to me that the PNCC also has apostolic succession, given that the founder of the…
The Catholic Worker co-founder went from a danger to souls to future saint, writes Russell Shaw In one of his more snarky stories about clerical life – it’s called The Forks – the American Catholic writer JF Powers capsulises the fraught relationship between a stuffy, self-important pastor and his young curate in a single, prickly…
Joseph D. White A child’s First Communion is an important and exciting milestone in the life of a Catholic family. As the first and most important teachers of their children, parents present their children for baptism and guide them toward Christ as they are initiated into the church community. Handing on our faith to the…
Sometimes there’s nothing as helpful as a good metaphor. In his book, The God Instinct, Tom Stella shares this story: A number of men who made their living as porters were hired one day to carry a huge load of supplies for a group on safari. Their loads were unusually heavy and the trek through…
Whatever else we may be thinking about in these last days of Lent, the readings for this fifth Sunday make it clear: Something’s coming. You can’t help but feel that the winds are shifting. The reading from Jeremiah promises, “The days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with…
Fr Ronald Rolheiser