WHEN I WAS in grammar school, I felt a calling. I spoke to my parents and the nuns at school and my pastor. I felt that I needed to be with God.
Guest Columnists
Ireland Is Mission Territory Once Again
I WASN’T SURPRISED by the result of Ireland’s May 25 referendum, which opened a path to legal abortion in the Emerald Isle by striking down a pro-life amendment to the Irish Constitution.
Shootings Stem from Mental Health Issues
WHEN PLANE HIJACKING became a national threat, we immediately addressed the problem by upgrading preventive measures at our airports: X-ray surveillance, body searches, luggage inspections.
Lifting Up the Vocation Of Fatherhood
Many men today are redefining what it means to be a father. They are intimately involved in the raising of children and the responsibilities of family life, navigating the competing demands of work and home with love. How can we as a Church support their callings? What sources of inspiration in our Catholic tradition offer ways to honor fathers?
A Turning Point Helped Refocus My Vocation
BORN INTO a peasant family in a rural area of Central Vietnam, I am the second of five children. Growing up, I had to work very hard as a farmer.
Craving Approval Is Not Evangelizing
THE BIZARRE COMMENT and the weird gesture have not, until recently, been associated with high-ranking churchmen. Both, alas, were on vivid display last month when Cardinals Reinhard Marx and Gianfranco Ravasi had more than a few of us scratching our heads in wonderment.
Converting, Conforming Ourselves to God’s Will
by Rev. Mr. Alessandro Giuseppe Linardi
THE BEGINNING OF my conversion was in 2004 at the Sanctuary of Saint Pio, when I was almost 22 years old. During that year, I really started to feel the love of God in my heart and the desire to leave everything to follow Our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Don’t Be Afraid to Find Your Answer in Prayer
When I speak with students, I often challenge them to find answers to the most elementary questions of life: Who am I? Why did God create me? What is my purpose/mission in life? These answers cannot be found in textbooks nor can they be googled on the internet. True answers come from a deep interior reflection and dialogue with God.
Quality of Relationships Continues to Decline
It is ironic then that with all the ubiquity of media today, we are poorer in relationships. David Brooks, a favorite New York Times columnist, writes that the quality of our relationships has been declining for decades. As a result, the percentage of Americans who are lonely has increased from 20 percent in the 1980s to 40 percent today.
Gap-Year Experiences For Recent Graduates
Gap year volunteer experiences can shape and expand recent graduates’ worldviews and faith lives.