Category Archives: Catholic

Feb 18 2018

Sacrificio en los momentos ordinarios

¡Me encanta mi trabajo! Probablemente tengo uno de los trabajos más geniales del mundo… y la mayoría de la gente estaría de acuerdo. Soy profesional de apoyo directo. Sirvo a individuos que tienen discapacidad...

Feb 17 2018

The Lord Looks on the Heart

Click here for Spanish version What did Jesus see in Levi that made Him call to the tax collector? There were other publicans there, sitting alongside Levi. Why did the Christ only invite Levi to follow Him? Jesus saw something...

Feb 17 2018

El Señor mira el corazón

¿Qué vio Jesús en Leví (el recaudador de impuestos) que lo hizo llamarlo? Había otros publicanos allí, sentados junto a Leví. ¿Por qué Cristo sólo invitó a Lev&iacute...

Feb 15 2018

Fasting and Sacrifice

Click here for Spanish version The first Friday of Lent. I immediately think of fasting and recall the numerous tuna casseroles, fish sticks, and creamed peas on toast served for the Friday dinners of my youth. I really hate can...

Feb 15 2018

El Ayuno y el Sacrificio

Es el primer viernes de la Cuaresma. De inmediato pienso en el ayuno y me acuerdo de las innumerables cacerolas de atún, los palitos de pescado empanados, y chícharos cremados sobre pan tostado que me sirvieron para las cenas los viernes de mi juventud. Realmente no me gusta el at&uacu...

Feb 15 2018

Mercy, Evangelization, and Pope Francis

Click here for Spanish version During the Jubilee Year of Mercy in 2016, I read a wonderful book by Pope Francis titled, “The Name of God is Mercy.” Actually, I read it three times over the course of a year. The book...

Feb 14 2018

We Rise Again From Ashes

Click here for Spanish version I have always wondered why Ash Wednesday services draw huge crowds. Churches are bursting at the seams! A friend once explained that every time the Church gives something away for free, peop...

Feb 13 2018

2018 Lent Reflections

Click Here for Spanish Version Welcome and thank you for joining us on this journey through Lent. Our first reflection will appear on Ash Wednesday (2/14/2018). We pray that your lenten journey draws you closer to the person of ...

Dec 24 2017

Christmas is the Fulfillment of God’s Promise

When I was little, I really wanted piano lessons. My parents said I could have them when they could find a piano and a teacher we could afford. They kept their promise, but it took a lot longer than I would have liked. First, we found a used p...

Dec 23 2017

You will be Called to Your Unexpected Bethlehem

We’re nearing the end of the Advent days of waiting. Soon it will be Christmas Eve. A busy night. Christmas trees and gifts and Christmas Eve dinners. Christmas family traditions, decorating, preparation for Christmas Day cooking. Christ...

Dec 22 2017

The Joy of Gift

One Thanksgiving when I was a child, our family prepared food at the local homeless shelter. I’ll never forget the smiles on the faces of the workers as well as the recipients. In spite of the hard work put into preparing the meal, the g...

Dec 21 2017

Allow the Incarnate Love Into Your Heart

In recent years Advent has started to mean something more to me. In the past, Advent was just a time for lighting candles and singing “Oh Come Oh Come Emmanuel”. However, that changed one year when I was in spiritual direction and ...

Dec 20 2017

That We May Become God

Last week my oldest son turned five. I remember five years ago it hit me just how totally helpless babies are. I was terrified when we were being discharged from the hospital because somehow those crazy nurses trusted me to take care of this i...

Dec 19 2017

Fear and Joy

A few things have kept coming to me during my prayer with today’s readings. “Do not be afraid; do not fear” and Joy; praise and glory, rejoice, Emmanuel. In both readings an angel of the Lord appears announcing the birth of a...

Dec 18 2017

Joseph, a Just Man

This Gospel is the Annunciation to Joseph. We are dealing with the greatest mystery to ever happen on earth: the Incarnation of the Lord, that God became a man. Before this mystery, we have to put aside our human way of thinking and ponder the...

Dec 17 2017

We’re Going to do Something Different Today!

I seem to remember my teachers in grade school using this line periodically: “We’re going to do something different today!” they would say. Whatever we did usually didn’t seem all that different, really, but I thought o...

Dec 16 2017

Don’t Miss Jesus in the Bethlehem of your Life

It all began quite spontaneously, unintentionally. One of those things that settle on you like a gentle night or a soft dew. Peace. Possibility. We sit there a long while, holding hands, our fingers curled together protectively, vuln...

Dec 15 2017

Some People Are Never Happy

After several years of destructive behavior because of his addiction to drugs, a man changed his life. He went to 12-step meetings. He came back to the Church. He made amends to those he had hurt and reconciled with his estranged wife. When sh...

Dec 14 2017

Fear Not, I Will Help You

San Juan de la Cruz, a Spanish Carmelite priest and monk of the 16th century, so perfectly incarnated that element in Christianity we call mystical that, on this day, we celebrate him not only as a Saint but also as a Doctor of the Church. The...

Dec 13 2017

Welcome the Mystery

New life is exciting… But it’s also scary. It’s alluring. And enveloping. And fulfilling. It’s all of these things. There is many a theological point to be made about why Christ chose to enter the world as a baby&helli...