What I find most interesting about the appearance of the angels to the shepherds is their message and their song, because the angels’ message and song unlock the secret of why the shepherds were important to St. Luke. The angels’ message is “Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great
The Gospel of Matthew begins with the well-known description of the genealogy of Jesus Christ. St. Matthew emphasized to his largely Jewish audience the real and deep connection of Jesus with the Hebrew people, showing that He was indeed the son of David. This connection became important not only for Jewish readers, but for all
After prayer and the administration of the sacraments, preaching is the most important work that a priest is called to do. Preaching may be understood as a prophetic task, in which the priest stands in place of Christ and mediates the truths of God to the people to whom he is sent: here, by preaching,
We will find it no easy task to achieve holiness through our work, afflicted as it is with two effects of the Fall. First, our weakened natures struggle to carry out our responsibilities—we are lazy and seek pleasure and comfort. To make matters worse, we live surrounded by other fallen creatures, who seek their own
We have been taught in our catechism that the seven sacraments are the principal channels of God’s grace to us His children in His Mystical Body, the Church. Among these seven sacraments, there are three that have a privilege and peculiarity in themselves. They are, indeed, very special because they give life, or restore life,
Lepers are called the “impure ones,” but, thanks to the work of several associations, Raoul Follereau’s in particular, people’s minds are changing. The medical profession now knows that leprosy is not a curse but an illness that isn’t very contagious and that, above all, it can be treated. However, lepers are still living on the
The phone rang in the parish office. Moments later, the call was transferred to Father Reed’s desk. He answered and said, “Hello, this is Father Reed.” His caller replied, “Good morning, Father. My name is Bob Johnson. You don’t know me, but my wife, Julie, made the retreat you gave three months ago. She loved
In the early years of my work, I was employed as a full-time psychological services specialist in the Pennsylvania prison system, but I would sometimes be called to different dioceses to help with cases on the weekends. This time, I was told that a couple had become involved in paranormal investigating and gotten into trouble.
Wisdom of St. Thérèse “No, there is no joy comparable to that which the truly poor in spirit experience.” Thérèse was acutely aware of the transient nature of material things and of the impermanence of this present life. Even at a very young age she understood that even those who believe themselves to be good
A Bright Cloud of Spirituality Rising from Every Home and Every Heart (Letter of Don Dolindo to E.C., a spiritual child of his) I am writing to you in the light of the Holy Rosary, the prayer that brings us so close to Our Lord and is today the object of a feast day on
