When my niece Lisa was baptized, I gave her a cross necklace. It was a lovely cloisonné cross with a pink rose in the center, but it was still a cross. How curious that an instrument of execution is now a worn as jewelry! (Can you imagine wearing a guillotine or an electric chair?) Moreover, […]
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Last year after Mass, someone said, “Come with me. You have to meet Father’s sister. She looks just like you.” Did anyone ever tell you, “You look just like my ________________”? (Fill in the blank.) Maybe we do have a doppelganger or two. But no one will ever be exactly like us, even if we […]
The heart of Jesus was formed and began beating in the body of a young Jewish girl. It stopped beating about thirty-three years later and was pierced by a soldier’s lance. Ever since, it has been a symbol of the God-Man’s love for the human race, for us. Three recent experiences have renewed my interest […]
As little children, after we were given something, we probably heard our parents coax, “What do you say?” We learned the importance of expressing thanks. I’m currently reading a book about growing a grateful heart, which offers some practical ideas. One valuable one is to look for the good when facing adversity. A friend in […]
Apparently our brains have more than one track. Maybe as you’re praying the rosary, you’re planning what you’ll have for dinner and before you know it, you’ve prayed the closing prayer. Maybe you’re reading a prayer, like the Divine Office, and your eyes are following the words, but when you’re finished, you don’t know what […]
Today is February 11, the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. There are 69 approved miracles of physical healing that occurred at Lourdes, France. (About 7,000 have been submitted.) But perhaps there are many more miracles of spiritual healing resulting from Mary’s visit to Earth back in 1858. I’m willing to bet that almost every […]
This past Saturday I gave a Spirit Day retreat to forty-six eighth graders. I told them that I had recently watched the movie “The Lion King” again. In it Simba’s father states this memorable line to his son: “Remember who you are.” Simba is from a line of kings who someday will be responsible for […]
As I was contemplating making holy boldness the topic of this post, surfing TV channels took me to a preacher who was speaking on— guess what? holy boldness! Talk about affirmation. Perhaps someone (maybe me) needs to be encouraged to practice this virtue. Holy boldness is the courage to do something daring for God’s sake, […]
Scripture dictates a few rules about speaking. On Sinai, God gave two commandments regarding words: We are not to take the name of God in vain and we are not to bear false witness. Jesus says we are not to make oaths to attest to the truth of what we are saying but to let […]
If you’re like me, some nights before you drift off to sleep you ponder questions like is there a God, is there really an afterlife, why do we suffer, and how did creation begin. These questions have engaged and intrigued people of all times and places. Different faith traditions have wrestled with them and ventured […]
The Sisters of Notre Dame of Chardon, Ohio, belong to an international congregation of more than two thousand apostolic women religious. We are one in mind and one in heart for the transformation of the world in Christ. 