On the Roster: Death and Hope

On the Roster "You're on the roster." Stop me if you’ve heard this one. There were two elderly men, Bill and Steve.  They were devout Catholics who also had a life-long love of the game of baseball.  They played together when they were young and coached their sons’ teams later in life.  In their old age they avidly … Continue reading On the Roster: Death and Hope

Human Trafficking, Love & St. Vitalis

Human Trafficking, Love & St. Vitalis 11 Jan 2023 1st century Roman mosaic; Kunsthistorisches Museum / Public Domain When a man dies, his life is revealed. Call no man happy before his death, for by how he ends a man is known.  (Sirach 11:27-28) Human Trafficking Prostitution sometimes hides under the phrase "the world's oldest profession." … Continue reading Human Trafficking, Love & St. Vitalis

A Loving Mother: Alma Redemptoris Mater

The Madonna of the Streets by Roberto Ferruzzi, 1897   Loving Mother of Our Redeemer Who doesn't want a loving mother?  Or, if we need to win the favor of a powerful person (a King, for instance), how could we pass up the opportunity of having his Mother put in a good word for us?  That's the dual … Continue reading A Loving Mother: Alma Redemptoris Mater

Let’s Keep the Confessional Open

The Seal of the Confessional?    What's wrong with the picture above?  At first glance it looks like a confessional of the sort you used to be able to find in any Catholic church.  A closer look reveals that the doors through which the penitents were accustomed to enter have been replaced by plain panels.  There's no way … Continue reading Let’s Keep the Confessional Open

A Sin is a Sin: St. Thomas and Conscience

     "What is truth?" I seem to remember someone raising the question somewhere.  For the idealogue, "truth" is whatever promotes the ideology, and if it happens to correspond with reality that's fine; if it doesn't, no problem, we'll make something up. Followers of  Him who is "The Way, The Truth, and The Life" (John 14:6) know better . . … Continue reading A Sin is a Sin: St. Thomas and Conscience

Eucharistic Adoration: Sitting at the Feet of the Lord

Most of us can probably identify with Martha: always “worried about many things”, and too distracted to notice the Lord.  Adoration is a great opportunity to give our “inner Martha” a rest and, like Mary, choose “the better part”. After all, what is Eucharistic Adoration, if not watching and listening at the feet of Jesus?

A Brief Visit to Hell

     Who wants to talk about Hell?  Just about nobody, and we can hardly blame them - why dwell on something as, well, hellish, as eternal torment?  Many people, both inside and outside the Church, only mention the Abode of the Damned at all in order to discount it.  At the same time, we don't have the luxury of … Continue reading A Brief Visit to Hell