How Can I Forgive When I Can’t Forget? While many people believe forgetting an injury is part of forgiveness, Fr. Justin Waltz, pastor of St. Leo’s Church in Minot, ND, suggested just the opposite. In fact, he stated that forgetting is not even possible. “The only type of forgetting I have heard of is stuffing,” … Read more
While working as a Chaplain Associate a few years ago, I visited “Joe” in his hospital room. He stopped drinking about ten days before but was getting very sick. “Drinking is stupid,” he said, “I never used to drink. One day I had a little bit, and then a little more and then I was … Read more
How Being a Baptist Prepared Me to be a Good Catholic (II of IV) Life, As I Find It I’ve been reminiscing about how my formative years as a Baptist actually helped me get to Catholicism – and continue to impact my Catholic life. It may surprise some that being a Baptist taught me to … Read more
Fr. Fortea, how can one tell if a vision is demonic in origin or is a psychiatric problem? The best way to discern if something is demonic in origin or merely a psychiatric problem is through the passage of time. If something that seems extraordinary (e.g., a vision or a locution) is a mental illness, … Read more
Dear Father John, I am a recent “revert” to Catholicism – and I am so glad to be so! Recently, a friend of mine published a book about finding female power through sacred global feminine symbols. This involves, from her perspective, abandoning all patriarchal religious traditions. I never bought into radical feminism – in fact, in college I … Read more
Dear Father John, I have started saying a daily Morning Offering Prayer in which I ask God with the help of His Grace that I remain all day in a spirit of praise and thanksgiving and that all of my actions be for the purpose of doing His will. However, I find I cannot remain in this spirit … Read more
At the center of the spiritual life is the real presence of Christ Jesus given to us in the Eucharistic worship He instituted for our sake. Saint Hildegard of Bingen, Doctor of the Church, reminds us of the proper disposition we must maintain throughout our worship. It is a disposition of quaerere Deum, a reverent … Read more
Drive-By Advice Life, As I Find It I’ve been grateful to those who wrote with advice about handling my Evangelical Protestant friends and family. The only problem, I think, is that some of the advice assumes two things. First, that I’m talking to a willing or eager non-Catholic who really wants to know about it. … Read more
Dear Father John, since bad spirits are very manipulative by nature is it possible for bad spirits to present themselves as good in certain circumstances in order to fulfill their plan and if so, what are some ways to distinguish that representation? Yes indeed, evil spirits are experts at deception. Our Lord, speaking of the devil, … Read more
Life, As I Find It My work often takes me to England – a country I love, in no small part because my wife is English and my son was born there. I have gone with friends and co-workers who sometimes surprise me with their reactions to things that are unfamiliar. One might say, “That’s … Read more
The Cross of Christ brings His glorious grace into the focus of contemplation. It is a difficult mystery to dwell on. The heart sometimes finds itself weary and sometimes even too discouraged to fix its gaze on the agony of the Lord. This is where frequent confession and humble examination of conscience can help the … Read more
In 1942, C.S. Lewis published one of his most enduring and endearing books. The Screwtape Letters is a collection of imaginative epistles from a senior devil to his junior colleague, outlining how he should handle his “patient.” Lewis wrote the book as a series of essays for The Guardian newspaper and confessed that the pieces … Read more
Last night we received a slight dusting of snow and then it iced covering the trees encapsulating them in to delicate figurines gleaming in the morning sunlight. While it looks beautiful, I sit on my couch in the warmth of my home knowing how frigid the air outside is. I should be used to it … Read more
Spiritual Direction on the Rise Picture this: A person, young or old, is practicing the faith yet naturally wants to grow in his or her relationship with Jesus and become closer to God. Can the faithful – or should they – turn somewhere for guidance? They can. After all, didn’t Jesus send the disciples … Read more
Lay people often overlook a source of deep spirituality and safety. One of the spiritual secrets of those in the religious life is a kind of spiritual guardrail system that helps them to know the path of peace on a moment to moment basis. This wisdom-born approach has aided thousands of ordinary people to become … Read more
O Virgin of Guadalupe, Mother of the Americas, grant to our homes the grace of loving and respecting life in its beginnings, with the same love with which you conceived in your womb the life of the Son of God. Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Fair Love, protect our families so that they may always … Read more
Dear Father John, I am a priest providing spiritual direction to a young man suffering with anger problems. He has recently returned to the sacraments. He is frustrated with God that he has asked him to take away this hurtful anger but God has not answered his prayer. Can you offer advice about how to … Read more
What Spiritual Direction Is … This post is a definition of what constitutes spiritual direction, its main focus, its central aim and its ultimate end as well as a listing of posts which explain what spiritual direction is not and a link to spiritual direction posts on this site. Now that we are clear on … Read more
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