At Bible Study this week, my friends and I were discussing “passions” – those things that we feel strongly about. According to Quentin Hakenewerth, S.M., “a passion is emotional energy which is attached to some goal or object. Passions help…

Jesus said to [Bartimaeus] in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man replied to him, “Master, I want to see.” Jesus said to him “Go; your faith has saved you.” And at once his…

James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said to him,
“Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.”
He replied, “What do you wish me to do for you?”
They answered him, “Grant that…

October 15^th is the feast of St. Teresa of Avila, Doctor of the Church. A 16^th century Carmelite who worked to bring reform to that religious order, she is a well-known mystic who was blessed with intimate union with God. In 1577,…

October has long been the month dedicated to the Rosary. Pope St. Pius V established the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary (October 7th) in 1573 to thank God for the victory of Christians over the Turks at Lepanto,…

Today I overheard a very interesting conversation regarding the Sacrament of Confirmation. Two women, both involved in religious education, were discussing whether teenagers should be made to make their confirmation. They both agreed that they should. They felt that it…

It has been a rough week for the Diocese of Springfield, Massachusetts. Mirroring similar processes that have occurred across the country, the Most Rev. Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell announced closures and mergers of parishes that will impact 22 faith communities.…

As a woman who persevered in a difficult marriage, dealt with a cantankerous mother-in-law who shared her home, and prayed unceasingly for a wayward son, St. Monica serves as a wonderful role model for wives and mothers who are struggling…

The Gospel of Mark tells us of the Transfiguration (Mark 9:2 – 8). Jesus takes his closest friends, Peter, James, and John, up onto a high mountain. “There in their presence he was transfigured: his clothes became brilliantly white, whiter…

When I was growing up, my mother and I would say the rosary every day together. Before each decade, she would announce the mystery and the fruit, or virtue, associated with it. I have continued the practice of saying the…