This week’s gospel (Matthew 13:24-33) has Jesus telling the parable of the wheat and the weeds. A man went out and sowed his seeds of good wheat. While he was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat.…

As a child, I loved to collect rocks. I can remember walking down the street with my father, picking up specimens to bring home. I would spend hours studying them and sorting them and placing them in the special box…

As parents, we have the primary responsibility to raise our children in the Catholic faith. They will learn how to be Catholic by the way that we live our lives and the way that we model Christian behavior through prayer,…

This afternoon and evening I watched the U.S. diving and gymnastics trials for the Olympics coming up in August. These young people have spent their entire lives working and preparing for this moment. They have gone over every move thousands of…

My older son David (age 7) has always been very fearful. He somehow got an extra dose of the “cautious” gene. This can be a good thing. After all, I feel fairly confident that he will never decide that racing…

On June 1, 2008, at his weekly Angelus address, Pope Benedict XVI encouraged Catholics to “renew devotion to the Sacred Heart of Christ in the month of June.” The Sacred Heart of Jesus is a symbol of both His divinity and…

Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them
will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.
The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house.
But it did not collapse; it…

With the feast of Corpus Christi (the Body and Blood of Christ) now behind us, the liturgical year returns to what is known as “ordinary time.” This season will last until the new liturgical year begins with the first Sunday of…

Fellow Catholic writer Pat Gohn just graduated from the Franciscan University of Steubenville with her Master’s Degree in Theology (Congratulations, Pat!). On her blog, she has a photo of herself dressed in cap and gown, proudly holding her diploma with…

May has long been considered a month devoted to Mary. As such, it is a fitting time to explore the four main Marian doctrines promulgated by the Church: Mary as Mother of God, the Immaculate Conception, Mary’s Perpetual Virginity, and…

Spring seems to be a special time for miracles. After the cold and desolation of winter, everything comes to life again. We are surrounded by miracles and, yet, we so often don’t stop to appreciate them. Daffodils and tulips are…

For it is better to suffer for doing good,
if that be the will of God, than for doing evil.For Christ also suffered for sins once,
the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous,
that he might lead you to God.

This text, from…

Over the course of the past three weeks, we have discussed the profound needs of children in Africa, how Caritas works in conjunction with the Little Sisters of St. Francis to provide help, and the results of this aid. Caritas is…

Evelyn’s face tells the story of the difference love can make. Where her eyes once were dim and her expression sad, she now smiles broadly and her eyes are full of hope.

In this four-part series on Caritas for Children, we…

In Uganda, Africa, it is far too common for children to grow up impoverished, malnourished, and lacking the basic necessities of life. Many have been orphaned or abandoned. Many are literally starving for love. In last week's article, "Caritas: The…

They are children, much like the ones you know and love. Edward is 8 years old. He likes science and playing with other kids. Betty will be turning 12 in April. She likes to write and swim. Judith is nine. She likes math and spelling. Their eyes are full of dreams for the future. The difference is that they live half a world away and their future is anything but certain.

Edward, Betty and Judith are children waiting to be sponsored through Caritas for Children , a Catholic organization dedicated to providing love, hope and financial support to improve the lives of children around the world. Over the course of this four article series, I will introduce you to Caritas: the reason they are needed, what they do to help, the fruit of their labor, and, perhaps most importantly, how you can help .

They are children, much like the ones you know and love. Edward is 8 years old. He likes science and playing with other kids. Betty will be turning 12 in April. She likes to write and swim. Judith is nine.…

Is it possible for our Catholic faith to transform our increasingly secular culture? Carl Anderson answers that question with a resounding "Yes!" in his new book A Civilization of Love: What Every Catholic Can Do To Transform the World . Anderson is the leader of the Knights of Columbus, the world's largest Catholic fraternal group. He has worked closely with both Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI and has served on several Vatican committees. In A Civilization of Love, he relies heavily on the teachings of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, especially the theology of the body and Pope Benedict's recent encyclical Deus Caritas Est (God is Love).

The biblical portrayal of Jesus suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane shows Jesus in one of his most human moments. He knows the horrors that await him and he is scared beyond belief. He has just shared the Passover meal…

What happens after we die? From the earliest ages, when a child first becomes aware of death, this question emerges. In talking to my own children (ages 6 and 5), they sometimes express a reluctance to go to heaven because their toys won't be there. I try to reassure them that heaven is the most wonderful place that they can imagine — better than the most perfect day here on earth. Yet, the question is natural, the reluctance is natural. For all the trouble that we sometimes confront in this life, it is familiar and comforting, and there are moments that are just amazing. Do we really have to leave? Do we really have to die? The prospect is scary.

Lent is a good time to work on our character. We all have those little aspects of our personality that plague us. If only I could be less jealous, prone to lying, proud, angry, etc. If only I could be more caring, faithful, generous, patient, and the list goes on. It can be so frustrating! We work on our faults, only to find that once again we have fallen back into the muck of our own sinfulness.

Yet, Lent invites us once again to fight the good fight. Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen wrote a wonderful article on "Emergence of Character." (It is included in "From the Angel's Blackboard," a compilation of his work.) In it, Sheen tells us that we can actually use our faults as stepping stones to sanctity. We can't do it alone, however. We need to pray for God's grace.

What is the purpose of the Church? Does it exist to bring us happiness today or to lead us to salvation and happiness for the world to come? Father Dwight Longenecker raised this question in "The Tale of 2 Churches"…

When was the last time you were surrounded by silence? It seems that background noise is an ever-present reality of our world. The T.V. and radio are our constant companions. Our children play with electronic toys that beep and wail…

What do you hunger for? We most often think of hunger in terms of our physical needs. What is our next meal going to be? During Lent, we are invited in a special way to focus instead on our hunger…

Does prayer interfere with the gift of free will?

This question was posed by a very intelligent self-described non-religious person. He was trying to sort out how prayer would work. If one prayed to God to intervene in human affairs, God…

In 1810, Elizabeth Ann Seton began the first free Catholic school for girls in the United States in Emmitsburg, Maryland. It would become the model for the Catholic school system in our country.

Elizabeth Ann Bayley was born in August 1774…

"Anne, what are you going to do to me?" he whispered.

"Nothing, dear. You've been punished already, I think."

"No, I haven't. Nothing's been done to me."

"You've been very unhappy ever since you did wrong, haven't you?"

"You bet!" said Davy emphatically.

"That…

In 1995, Christopher and Barbara (Mikulski) Hoar wanted to adopt a child. Because they were over 40, they were encouraged to pursue an international adoption. Barbara was fluent in the Polish language and had relatives in Poland so they became…

I have begun participating in the Catholic Exchange Women's Bible Study being presented by Cheryl Dickow. (Registration on this session is closed but it will be presented again in the spring. Go here to place your name on the list for news…

Mary is a prominent player in the Gospel narratives this week. From the feast of the Holy Family to the feast of Mary, Mother of God, to the Epiphany, she is there — racing to Egypt at the side of…

Are you approaching the New Year with hope? Somehow, the turning of the calendar page causes us all to reflect a bit more on where our journey through this life is taking us. We may rejoice that the year is…

I have a rather eclectic Christmas tree. On its boughs hang a collection of ornaments ranging from some my husband made as a child to those I made in the early days of our marriage to those my children made. Some ornaments…

Sunday's gospel featured John the Baptist crying out in the desert, "Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand" (Mt 3:1-12). John must have been a wild-looking figure in his camel-hair clothing and leather loin-cloth, preaching repentance. Yet,…

I still believe in Santa Claus, not the whole North Pole concept complete with Rudolph of course, but the idea of Santa Claus as the spirit of giving. I know some people feel children shouldn't be allowed to believe in…

Our pastor shared the following story with us at the Children's Mass this Sunday:

This morning I am going to tell you a story about a king. As you know, a king usually wears a crown made of gold, silver, and…

I read the paper this morning as I always do. The pages were filled with discouraging news — news of the war, of the real estate market slump, of rising gas prices, and increasingly bare shelves at local food banks,…

A colleague in her sixties shared the story of being a young girl and being told by her music teacher to simply "mouth the words." Scarred by the experience, the woman still hesitates to sing today. Many of us can…