Father, Is it a Sin If…

Through the years, there is one question that I’ve come to expect: “Father, is it a sin if…” followed by some particular situation.

A Glimpse of Paternal Radiance

By Father James Rodriguez ONCE AGAIN, AS A Church we have undertaken these 40 days of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, walking with our Lord on the way to Calvary. It seems as if our Christmas celebration is barely over before we are called to commemorate the Passion, yet truly both events point to the same […]

Rainbow Connection – The Nature of Covenant

By Father John P. Cush SISTER HELENA Burns, f.s.p., one of the best voices in Catholic media and dialogue with culture, recently commented that the best recent films based on the Bible are being made by atheists. I tend to agree. This is not just concerning recent films; go back to Pasolini’s “The Gospel According […]

Looking Beyond the Surface

The first reading today from the Old Testament book of Leviticus offers us a glimpse into the mindset of the Hebrew people in the midst of the sojourn in the desert.

Seeing With the Eyes of Christ

Today’s Gospel reminds me very much of the cross worn with the habit of the Religious Sisters of Mercy of Alma, Michigan.

Vocations Are Rooted in the Domestic Church

By Father John Cush It’s fascinating how trends go in Hollywood for film genres. Think about it – the 1940s brought big, busy, brightly colored musicals. The 1950s gave Westerns pride of place and the 1960s offered the surf film. The 1970s gave us the outer space, sci-fi aspects with the success of “Star Wars” and […]

Sinfulness Cannot Stop the Power of God’s Word

by Father Robert M. Powers The Book of Jonah is unique and fascinating. A short narrative that is only three pages long, Jonah is a rich theological text, dense with meaning. Unlike the other books of the prophets which primarily are collections of oracles, in the Book of Jonah we hear only a sentence of Jonah’s doomsday […]

Embracing Our Vocations Brings True Happiness

The Church encourages us to pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life and we certainly should. I wish, however, we prayed more often that every baptized person discern and respond to the vocation or vocations to which God is calling him or her. Today’s readings challenge us to embrace every dimension of the vocation […]

Be Open to Life’s Epiphanies

By Fr. Robert M. Powers We conclude the Christmas season with a magnificent epiphany. We no longer end the season with last Sunday’s Epiphany of the Lord, the shining forth of the divine presence to the Magi at Bethlehem. We close with another epiphany, the Baptism of the Lord. And the recipient of this epiphany […]

Imitate the Wise Men: Embrace Change

By Father Robert M. Powers WHEN I WAS 25, I was not happy when I learned that a second beloved dimension of Christmas was not true. I still loved the custom of Christmas gifts and appreciated what I thought was its obvious apologetic in Matthew’s account of the Magi’s visit. A friend who was a […]