We all remember high school and its cliques: the jocks, the nerds, the stoners, etc…and of course the mass of kids who just hope to survive without any embarrassing moments on their permanent record. One thing was certain: you were either a cool...
In my experience, when Catholics are confronted with the idea of evangelizing, the first reaction is fear—plain, unadulterated fear. You know how they say people most fear public speaking and death? Well, most Catholics would rather give a speech...
Recently I’ve been reading The Hobbit to two of my young children. Central to the story is lost treasure: Thorin and his fellow dwarves ask for Bilbo Baggins’ help in reclaiming their trove, which has been captured by the dragon Smaug and hidden...
For many Christians, few things are more stressful than talking about the faith with others. This is especially true here in America, where we are taught from a young age that it’s not polite to talk about religion or politics in public. Telling...
Although evangelization is a core activity of the Catholic life, a lot of Catholics today don’t understand what it entails. Having been involved in Catholic evangelization for a quarter of a century, I’ve encountered many evangelization-related...
I recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of my conversion to Catholicism. When I think back to the time of my conversion, I remember that it was a season of much optimism in the Church. Everyone seemed to feel that we had turned the corner from...
Martin Scorsese’s recent movie Silence debuted last week to critical acclaim. The movie, based on the book by Shusaka Endo, is the fictional story of a Jesuit priest in the 17thcentury who travels to Japan to discover what happened to his...
A woman asked a friend to take her to the doctor’s office. She had a stressful medical procedure planned, and she needed her friend’s support. Her friend willingly agreed, and accompanied her throughout the process. The woman was happy to have...
A recent article in Psychology Today by Marty Nemko reflected on “Marriage’s Purpose.” In an era when so many marriages disintegrate, or don’t even happen, such a discussion is helpful. Why get married in the first place? What is the purpose of...
In baseball, there are “unwritten rules.” They cover things like how you react after hitting a home run, what you do after your star player is hit by a pitch, and whether you can bunt in the late innings of a no-hitter. As the name suggests...
Holy Saturday is perhaps the most mysterious day in the liturgical calendar. On this day, God is silent; He is in the tomb. The Church is silent as well; no liturgies are celebrated for the day. From the end of the Good Friday liturgy to the...
Over the past few years, we’ve all seen articles advising people what to do in an active shooter situation. The advice usually goes, “run, hide, fight.” But many articles point out that the biggest challenge for responding to a crisis isn’t...
