Perspective
What Pope Benedict XVI Taught Us About Dying Well
What does it mean to die well? The end, it’s inevitable for all of us. When, we don’t know. How, we don’t know. Where, we don’t know. But we know […]
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Perspective
Farewell To Pope Benedict
One of the most consequential churchmen of the last hundred years has died. Pope Benedict XVI (formerly Joseph Ratzinger) leaves a remarkable legacy in both the Church he served and […]
Perspective
Who Were These Magi Driven by the Wish to Know God?
Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord Matthew 2:1-12 This weekend, the Church celebrates the ancient Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord, commemorating, and reflecting upon, the visit of […]
Perspective
A Season of Change, A Time of Hope
There are a lot of joys about being a grandparent, but for starters, it lets us relive those first months and years of being a parent. We’ve got a lot […]
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God Became a Baby
There is just something about a baby. If a baby is introduced into a crowded room, everyone will want to see him. Conversations will stop, smiles will spread across people’s […]
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A New Year’s Habit
As one does at this time of year, I opened a new 2023 calendar and started flipping through the months to mark a few upcoming events. In the process, I […]
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Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God
THE OCTAVE DAY OF THE NATIVITY OF THE LORD Luke 2:16-21 The Book of Numbers provides the first reading. It is the fourth book, in sequence, of the first five […]
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He, the Eternal Light of the World, is Born
Feast of the Birth of Our Lord John 1:1-18 The third section of Isaiah supplies the first lesson. To understand the reading, it helps to be aware of the historical […]
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Live in the Spirit of Bob Cratchit this Christmas
Charles Dickens writes in the preface to his famous story “A Christmas Carol”: “I have endeavoured in this Ghostly little book, to raise the Ghost of an Idea, which shall […]
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Singing the Joys of Advent
The hymns of Advent often are rooted in biblical faith and filled with varied symbols and imagery pertinent to salvation history’s central themes — primarily focused on when our Savior […]
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Focusing on Christ Dispels the World’s Darkness
Fourth Sunday of Advent Matthew 1:18-24 The Book of Isaiah is the source of this weekend’s first reading. Isaiah was between a rock and a hard place, so to speak. He […]
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The Blessing of Four Full Weeks of Advent
What day is Christmas? It’s a delightful thing to think about. Easter, tied to the celebration of Passover, occurs each year on Sunday. But Christmas, tied to Dec. 25, is […]