In early December, instead of “decking our halls with boughs of holly,” Marcia and I were in flight to Rome for a Jubilee Year pilgrimage to Assisi and Rome. We were led by Sister Faith Marie Woolsey, FSE, daughter of parishioners Mike and Ellen Woolsey, and fellow Franciscan Sisters from Assisi and Rome. And truly, … Continued
An Unlikely Pairing: Humility and Magnanimity In today’s first reading from Sirach we read, “Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find favor with God.” Another translation [RSV] reads, “The greater you are, the more you must humble yourself; so you will find favor in the sight of the Lord.” Consequently, … Continued
The Saintly ‘Odd Couple’ “I was one way, and now I am completely different. And the thing that happened in between… was him.” (Mary Magdalene in film series The Chosen) Today we celebrate Saints Peter and Paul – recognized as the two ‘pillars’ who hold up the doorway of the Church. Both are patron saints … Continued
Sacred Spaces, Sacred Faces In his 1981 book Addicted to Mediocrity – 20th Century Christians and the Arts, then-evangelical Franky Schaeffer satirized the arts and media of the so-called ‘religious right’ movement of the 1980s. The target of Schaeffer’s acerbic wit was predominately fundamentalist and evangelical Protestantism. And although not in his crosshairs, Catholics were … Continued
“When There Remains Nothing to be Desired” Today, once again in the midst of the Advent season we have come to Gaudete Sunday.Those of us who have been around the block a few times are aware that Gaudete is aLatin verb that means ‘to rejoice’. Although much of the penitential quality of theAdvent season has … Continued