For most of us, New Year’s Day means both celebrating what’s ahead and learning from the year that’s ending. For Catholics, it’s seeing the past year not just through the rearview mirror but refracted through the lens of faith. A new year offers us more than a fresh start. It can be an opportunity for…
As a new year begins, it’s natural to look to the future with a sense of hope. But for Catholics, the holy year 2025 presents a unique opportunity to explore and cultivate hope – and to examine what makes it so difficult to hold onto. Most of us know that hope is not wishful thinking…
Q: What is the significance of a Jubilee Year? A: The short answer is, a Jubilee Year is a special year of grace and reconciliation. Today, the Catholic Church celebrates a Jubilee Year every 25 years, although the Pope can also declare an ‘extra’ extraordinary Jubilee year between the regularly scheduled jubilees (as Pope Francis…
We crave few things as deeply as self-expression and recognition. We have an irrepressible need to express ourselves, be known, recognised, understood, and seen by others as unique, gifted, and significant. A heart that is unknown, unappreciated in its depth, lacking in meaningful self-expression and recognition, is prone to restlessness, frustration, and bitterness. And, truth…
Scott P. Richert We… see all round us every day the living turning into the lifeless. What we never see is the lifeless turning into the living,” said Owen Barfield. When I was a child, I used to collect common fossils – trilobites, brachiopods and cephalopods, mostly. I was fascinated by their shape and symmetry,…
Carol Glatz When Catholics come to Rome for the Holy Year, their journey should have the specific goal of encountering and listening to Jesus, Pope Francis said. With a jubilee, the destination is the Holy Door, which “represents Jesus Christ, his mystery of salvation, which allows us to enter into the new life, free from…
Q: What is the significance of a Jubilee Year? A: The short answer is, a Jubilee Year is a special year of grace and reconciliation. Today, the Catholic Church celebrates a Jubilee Year every 25 years, although the Pope can also declare an ‘extra’ extraordinary Jubilee year between the regularly scheduled jubilees (as Pope Francis…
Where is Joy? AC My God, where is joy hidden? It is in You. And where is happiness hidden? It is in You. We are created for happiness, and we look here and there for it, and think it’s in this or that, in money, holidays, fine food. But no, it is in You, only…
St Ita of Ireland, also known as ‘the Brigid of Munster’, is one of the most revered saints in Irish Catholic tradition. Born around 480 in Co. Waterford, she grew to embody the virtues of piety, compassion, and wisdom. She is celebrated on January 15 and holds a special place in the hearts of Irish…
Christians are baptised “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” affirming their faith in the Trinity. This is the central mystery of Christian faith, revealing God in himself and as the source of all salvation. The Trinity encompasses the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as one God,…
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
Renata Milán Morales