Category: Reflections
Staying Sane While Secluded by Rose Marie Dunphy
While suffering marks our character, acts of kindness go a long way in making us whole. These are the moments our humanity can shine through and a new normal, one better than the one we left behind, can emerge.
Prayer During a Time of Crisis by Gene Ciarlo
In our modern world, religion is the last port in a storm. We can put our good theology and moral teachings in modern dress so that the world might sit up and take notice.
Letter to the Invisible Faithful by Fr. Jean-Miguel Garrigues, OP
May this unusual period become an opportunity for us to discover another aspect of the church, an aspect which is invisible but nevertheless very real: the communion of saints.
A Spiritual Sisterhood of Faithful Women by Dorothy Yeomans
As a woman I claim this profound gift: love is poured out on me; I am then empowered to pour it out on others, as the women in my life have done so beautifully.
No Greater Intimacy by E. J. Sweeney
Consuming the body and blood of Christ is a wonderful, mystical union. It gives us an intimacy with God we never would have thought possible. But it also arouses a dangerous memory.
On Guidance by Wally Swist
It is not only our responsibility to learn the practice of vigilant listening for our own benefit but also, most specifically, to learn and institute this practice for the sake of all those around us.
Faith or Fear: An Ongoing Struggle by Fran Salone-Pelletier
Both of us felt the prophetic call to be ourselves, while not wishing to suffer both the agony and ecstasy of authenticity. We wanted to speak out—and, simultaneously, were afraid to say too much.
A New Covenant and a New Way of Forgiving by Ed Burns
The kind of forgiveness that Jesus brings into our lives is rooted in the belief and recognition that all creation is good, and it takes into account the fundamental worth of each person.
Reflections on Two Hundred Years of Herman Melville: Part III: Into the Vortex by Leonard Engel
The third and final installment of an in-depth look at the spiritual, metaphysical, and moral questions of Melville's masterpiece.
The Compassion of Jesus Is Our Greatness by Gene Ciarlo
How different would our relationship to Jesus, to God, and to one another be if we lived not to be saved from the clutches of evil and eternal death but to give our lives in service to one another?
Striking Rock-Hard Stubbornness to Find Refreshing Grace by Fran Salone-Pelletier
Wells are everywhere. In every desert place, for every desert person, we are oases witnessing to the Lord’s strength.
The Holy Family by Paul Nyklicek
There is no human being anywhere on this planet that isn’t our brother or sister. There is no animal or plant that isn’t a relative. The land, the water, and the air are members of the same family to which we all belong.
The Forgotten Work of Mercy by Hank Mattimore
The aim of prison ministry is not to admonish others for what they have done but to enter into relationship, provide compassion, and, above all, to listen.
Writer’s Statement: On Beauty by Wally Swist
There are times when we seem to have an overview of our lives, when we view them as a tapestry that has been woven together of apparently disparate events but which we can now see as exhibiting a pattern.