Perspective
True Joy Comes from Pursuing Holiness, Not Wealth
25th Sunday in Ordinary Time The first reading for this weekend is from the Book of Amos. This prophet, regarded as one of the Minor Prophets, was from Tekoa, a […]
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Perspective
At Tor Vergata, the Wisdom of John Paul II, Leo XIV Intertwine
The sun set warm and golden over Tor Vergata University in the late summer of 2000. A crowd of more than 2 million young people pressed close to the barricades […]
Perspective
A Gift, but with an Expiration Date
Diagnosed in 1995 with the most aggressive form of brain cancer – known as glioblastoma multiforme – and given only a few months to live, Ben Williams, a professor of […]
Perspective
Keeping a Watchful Eye
“I finished it,” my 16-year-old son says as he emerges from the dark of the basement where he has been watching the 1995 film “Se7en,” a thriller about the seven […]
Perspective
In the Crucified Christ, We See the Saving Power of the Cross
Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross The Exaltation of the Holy Cross supplants the observance of the 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time. The Book of Numbers provides the […]
Perspective
The Ultimate Crown: College Athletes Give Glory to God
In the early summer of 2023, three softball players from the University of Oklahoma sat in a postgame news conference after helping the Sooners win their record-tying third straight national […]
Perspective
The Sounds of Silence
It has been almost eight months since fire rained down upon the Pacific Palisades, destroying more than 6,800 houses and businesses and turning this Pacific Ocean overlook into a smoldering […]
Perspective
Search for the True Cross
Pope Leo’s 70th birthday is on Sunday, September 14; it coincides with a liturgical feast dedicated to an event – the Exaltation of the Holy Cross – rather than to […]
Perspective
Disciples of Christ Must Stand Firm Despite Cultural Pressure
23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time According to scholars, the book of wisdom was written in Alexandria, Egypt, by a Jew who had emigrated from the Holy Land, or whose ancestors […]
Perspective
Calling Upon Divine Inspiration
When my editor let me know my deadline was approaching to submit this column, I was struck with a bit of fear. I had no idea what to write about, […]
Perspective
Music, Like Mercy, Streaming Down River
It began as a low hum on the horizon, barely perceptible. Then a pulsing rhythm rose from the river – the brass and beat of a live band drifting through […]
Perspective
What a Beautiful Family
Whenever I take my kids anywhere in public, I get comments. “All boys?! Didn’t you ever try for a girl?” “Five?! You must be crazy!” “Are they all yours?” We […]