by Father Lauder First in a Series MY EXPERIENCE has been that occasionally a book gains my attention at just about the right moment. What I mean is that the book comes to my attention at a time when the content of the book speaks to what is on my mind and perhaps to problems […]
Arts and Culture
Fr. Robert Lauder is a philosophy professor at St. John’s University and the author of “Pope Francis’ Spirituality and Our Story” (Resurrection Press).
Friendship and Holiness
by Father Robert Lauder Twelfth and Last in a Series IN CLASS THIS spring, though I had not planned to say anything about friendship when I prepared my lecture, I spontaneously said that I thought friendship was one of life’s great blessings. Later in the day, reflecting on what I had said in class, I […]
Called to Love
Eleventh in a Series MY SUSPICION is that when Catholics hear the word “vocation” they spontaneously think of a religious vocation – a vocation to the priesthood or to religious life as a nun or a brother. The notion of vocation is much broader than that. I believe that every person has a vocation. In […]
The Problem of Pornography
by Father Robert Lauder THOUGH pornography has been part of our society for many years, I still think of it as a new moral problem. What is new of course is the easy access that everyone can have today to pornography. Up until recently I had an image of pornography as being available in sleazy […]
Existential Poverty
by Father Robert Lauder Tenth in a series During the last few months when members of the discussion group that I moderate have gathered to discuss Father James Martin’s book, The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life (HarperOne, An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2010, 432 pages, $26.99), they break into superlatives […]
Art, Work and Prayer
by Father Robert Lauder Ninth in a Series REREADING a section of Father James Martin’s The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life (HarperOne, An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2010, 432 pages, $26.99), I came upon a page that dealt with three topics that have long interested me. The page reminded me […]
Where Does Prayer Begin — With Us or God?
Seventh in a series I have just re-read a few pages about prayer in Father James Martin’s The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life (HarperOne, An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2010, 432 pages, $26.99) and Father Martin’s reflections on prayer speak powerfully to me. His struggles with prayer seem a mirror […]
In Our Vulnerability, We Are More Open to God
by Father Robert Lauder Sixth in a series IN EXPLORING the ways that God communicates with us, Father James Martin in his book, The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life (HarperOne, An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2010, 432 pages, $26.99) and in his essay, “Get Closer” in the March 21 issue […]
Inner Restlessness Provides Glimpse of Our Longing for God
by Father Robert Lauder Fifth in series JUST AROUND THE time that the members of my discussion group and I were discussing Father James Martin’s book “The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life” (HarperOne) the Jesuit weekly, America, published an essay by Father Martin that was adapted from his book. I […]
God Speaks to Us Through Emotions
by Father Robert Lauder Fourth in a Series I am wondering about how emotional of a person I am. That I don’t know seems strange, even to me. Though I may be wrong, I have an image of myself as a very controlled person, completely in charge of my emotions and feelings. At least that […]