Today the Church celebrates the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a great appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to St. Juan Diego, which forever changed the course of history in the Americas. Her appearance on Tepeyac Hill, Mexico in 1531 helped convert millions and millions of people in the New World — Native Americans, […]
Today, December 8th, the Church would observe the feast of the Immaculate Conception. This year the feast is transferred to Monday the 9th, giving precedence to the Second Sunday of Advent. In my experience, the Immaculate Conception is one of the most misunderstood teachings of the Church. Today, I’d like to address three common misconceptions […]
It was a Friday evening as I sat in line for confession. I thought to myself, “This certainly isn’t how the average twenty-something gal spends a Friday night.” I sat in a quiet church with the Blessed Sacrament exposed, waiting for my turn to get my soul scrubbed clean. As I waited, I pulled out my rosary […]
Farmers pause in their fields at midday and bow their heads in prayer. Businessmen and women overhear the ringing bells of nearby churches during their lunch break in the downtown business district. Neighbors to Catholic Churches hear the church bells toll thrice daily at six, noon, and six, as an invitation to pray the traditional […]
Disclaimer: This article is going to sound cynical. It might even sound anti-Christian. Please stick with it. There is a point. I am sarcastic and sometimes offensive. Again, there is an overall point. This New Evangelization thing in the Church is pretty cool, you gotta admit. I mean, JPII said it’s time for the Church […]
In my youth, I prayed the rosary with my grandmother or other ladies from the parish after daily Mass. Before the first three Hail Marys, the leader always announced a special intention: “We pray for an increase in the theological virtues of faith, hope and charity.” As one could imagine, this piqued the curiosity of […]
It’s fascinating to see throughout history, the influence of the serpent in both culture and religion. How many prominent civilizations, some devilishly dominant and so technologically advanced for their times, held the worship of this so called “god.” We probably tend to ask ourselves, “Why would a loving God leave these children of his in error, basking in […]
Well, Hail Mary is a historical and biblical phrase used by an angel of God to a virgin called Mary. This historic event is so important that the most ancient Christian Church has made it into a prayer to remind her members who are the Body of Christ about what the Yes of a Virgin […]
With all the post-interview spotlight beaming/glaring on Pope Francis, I hope all Catholics and secular media alike pay careful attention to what did on October 13th, 2013: consecrate the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Specifically, I wish he makes everyone wonder: what this consecration means to me on a personal level, why is […]
October 9th came and went. An important anniversary for the Church in the United States passed and very few people realized the significance of the date. My own life was consumed with the busyness that surrounded me, leaving me unable to write for the momentous anniversary. 154 years ago in Northeastern Wisconsin on October 9, […]
Special thanks to my sister-in-Christ, Liesl Grace Dowd, for helping me with this reflection! Her words are towards the end. Our Lady has many titles, of which only some are official. That doesn’t mean the unofficial titles are invalid—and I found this particular title brought warmth to my heart. It’s so unknown that the first […]
I’ve had an off and on again relationship to Our Mother for as long as I’ve been Catholic. She was very instrumental in my conversion in 2004. I had a substantial devotion to her. I had been a “Goddess’ girl” as a Wiccan, so I guess on some level I kind of traded one goddess […]
In light of yesterday’s feast, the Exaltation of the Cross (September 14), it seems appropriate to reflect on the cross. Specifically, I’d like to focus on the only approved Marian apparition in the United States of America. On October 9, 1859, the Queen of Heaven appeared to Adele Brise in Robinsonville (now Champion), Wisconsin. Our […]
Among all kinds of cultural, political, and interfaith dialogues, the one between Christianity and Islam is arguably the most interesting. Many of my friends from the Western world regard Islam as some kind of a mysterious, exotic, almost “unknowable” religion. However, some scholars, such as Hillaire Belloc, view Islam not as a totally separate religion, […]
I really love everything about the Rosary. It is quite refreshing to read what other giants of the Holy Catholic Faith have to say about this priceless devotion. Quote #1 “The Rosary is the most beautiful and the most rich in graces of all prayers; it is the prayer that touches most the Heart of […]
You probably did not miss Pope Francis’ recommendation that bishops should smell like their sheep. What may have been missed is the universal call to holiness. If a bishop is supposed to smell like their followers, what does your bishop smell like? If we want our bishops to be cowards in the midst […]
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