Pixabay.com A dear friend in a nursing home is always asking me if I think she will get to heaven. We are talking here about a woman who had been a nun but left after many years; gave her life to teaching small children and served her parish in sundry ministries, especially communion to the... Continue Reading →

Pixabay.com We are back-to-school now…way before time in my opinion.  As a child, I never returned to school until after Labor Day.  I think it should still be that way today allowing kids to be kids while the days are hot, and the woods and playgrounds and yards and streets of fun are alive from morning to... Continue Reading →

Pixabay.com My friend is turning 80 and getting a bit tired trying to do everything her prayer life has asked of her over the years. She always had a mountain of spiritual reading books near her ‘prayer chair.’ She could discuss the gurus like Thomas Merton, Richard Rohr, Ronald Rolheiser, and any Jesuit currently flexing... Continue Reading →

Pixabay.com In a recent interview about her appointment from Pope Francis as one of three women to the Dicastery for Bishops, Sister Yvonne Reungoat outlined the qualities we should look for in episcopal candidates.  She stated the top quality unequivocally is, “…a bishop (one) must have the ability to listen, both to those who have the... Continue Reading →

Pixabay.com I am typically inspired by the people who come for spiritual direction.  The fact that they are seeking growth in the spiritual life and humble enough to request guidance or companionship in the effort is pretty amazing to me.  Their ‘seeking’ will help them to flourish within the soul, to become happier persons and to contribute... Continue Reading →

Pixabay.com Roman Catholics have a veritable galaxy of canonized saints to pray to for various needs and occasions.  We love our saints!  Look at the marquee of any Catholic church and you will see the church is most likely named for a saint unless it is dedicated to Mary, the Mother of God, or the Holy Trinity.  Right... Continue Reading →

Pixabay.com It is the mid-1980s and a scourge of a health epidemic was raging throughout our country and the world, eventually.  Thousands were dying of AIDS and there was no known cure.   We only knew that the disease stemmed from indiscreet sexual practices, particularly among the gay community. In San Francisco, California, a popular opinion journalist for... Continue Reading →

Pixabay.com The title of this blog refers to the prayer Catholics say before receiving Communion at Mass.  A humble centurion, a Roman, a pagan, said this as he asked Jesus to cure his servant who was gravely ill.  In the full Biblical text, the centurion first sends Jewish believers to make the request of Jesus.  Maybe he felt... Continue Reading →

Pixabay.com The other day a car in front of me paused at a red light and I was suddenly angered to see the large sign on the hatchback window.  It read: “My loving family” (in lovely cursive calligraphy) and above the words were decals of two AR-15 rifles, one shot gun rifle and three handguns.  I... Continue Reading →

Ah summer!  My favorite season for exploring and embracing the thrill of wild growth near us and secret caverns built by trees bent with the ache of age and rocks haphazardly piled in sundry patterns resembling lintels and frameworks of inviting doorways.  Nearby, a frivolous creek, which feeds the Cuyahoga River leading to Lake Erie, slows down... Continue Reading →