There is a strange little book in the Bible. Situated within the wisdom section of the Old Testament is the Song of Solomon, in which the first verse reads, “The song of songs . . . ” Similar in language…

From the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Justice Ginsburg and Euthanasia, to health care reform that would endanger our weakest, many American Catholics are waking up like Rip Van Winkle to discover on November 4th of last…

She is a strange and beautiful grace, a holy mystery, Our Mother. There was never a moment in Jesus’ thirty three years that Mary did not surround Him with the womb of her love, as she surrounds all of us.…

I despise it when I pray desperately for something and God ignores me. I know we’re supposed to smile our holy smile and accept God’s perfect will with great meekness and faith, but I always feel like throwing a tantrum…

She was old enough to be my mother, the holiest woman I knew, and she sat in the front row of my Bible study class. We could not have been more different. She was in her forties, I in my…

In the Old Testament tabernacle, a copy of the temple in heaven, the sanctuary was covered with curtains. To the left of the sanctuary entrance was a piece of equipment used to illuminate it, the gold lampstand. According to the…

One of the most spectacular benefits Catholics receive from a study of the Old Testament tabernacle is the discovery of how rational, necessary, and relevant are all the practices, rituals, trappings, and structures of the Catholic Church. Some knowledge of…

"What is it?" the Israelites asked, when it appeared on the wilderness floor, and so they named it "manna," meaning "What?" (Ex. 16:14-31). Manna was heavenly bread miraculously provided by God to nourish the Israelites during their sentence of 40…

My new name is Peniel, meaning “I wrestled with God and won.” Having just received it last week, it is fresh and painful. This name comes from Genesis 32, in which Jacob is assaulted by a strange man who engages…

It is the Lord of Hosts, the Lord of Armies, who trained his hands for war, the great warrior-poet, King David, sang in Psalm 18:34, the same Lord who makes war today. Independence Day brings to mind the American ensign,…