An Oasis of Joy in the Desert of Lent
How does the Christian prepare for a great feast? Our Lord tells the Pharisees, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken...
View ArticleLooking for Jesus
Like any mother who has lost track of her child, Mary spoke tenderly to her son: “Your father and I have been looking for you anxiously” (Lk 2:48). Her sweet words echo throughout the ages because she...
View ArticleBy His Wounds You Are Healed
Holy Week already happened. The events of Holy Week—the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus—transpired thousands of years ago on a distant continent. There is little left of the first Holy Week....
View ArticleNail Me to the Wood, Lord
Wood is an unforgiving substance. Think about the last time you stubbed your toe on that wooden door or chair or received a splinter from grabbing a loose board. But the hardness and stiffness of wood...
View ArticlePonderings Pertaining to Penances
Several years ago I took up running for exercise. I have never been much of an athlete myself and I was not familiar with physical training in any official capacity. When I arrived at the novitiate,...
View ArticleWhat a Shame!
Shame. That gut-wrenching, wincing feeling we have in reaction to our own failures and mistakes. It’s more than mere embarrassment from an awkward social situation. It may or may not reflect any real...
View ArticlePassionate Music
It is evident that the human soul is moved in various ways according to various melodies of sound . . . Hence the use of music in the divine praises is a salutary institution, that the souls of the...
View ArticleThe Days Are Fast Approaching
It is approaching, whether or not you’re ready. There is no hiding from it. The weeks have rolled on with gathering speed. The statues and images now sit under veils of violet, and all seems quieter in...
View ArticleCome, Let Us Adore
“We do what!?” I thought. “Isn’t this idolatry!” But there it was “All, after genuflecting to the Cross, depart in silence.”
View ArticleAwake, O Sleeper!
Editor’s Note: The following is based on a precious text of the Triduum, read as the second reading in the Office of Readings for Holy Saturday: an ancient homily for Holy Saturday (which we strongly...
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