You’ve probably heard the expression, “knock on wood.”  But what you may not know is that this popular saying refers to one of our own Catholic traditions – that of the recitation of the Rosary. The Rosary was a physical representation of one’s inner faith, and it was natural to finger or touch it when one was in distress or pain. “Knocking” the rosary beads together, people said, was sure to make one’s wish come true!The word itself comes fro...

Look around, at the state of the world, at the multiple crises erupting every day in every corner of the globe, and it’s easy to say, “How could it get worse?”Those were probably the same words used by people exactly one hundred years ago. In 1917, the western world was still engulfed in what would hopefully—and erroneously—be called the “war to end all wars,” warfare on a scale that no one had known before, a war that refined the use of poison, that cla...

Repetition. It’s often seen by those outside the faith as a real stumbling-block to understanding some key components of Catholicism—prayer, liturgy, even the calendar. “You say the same things over and over,” an acquaintance of mine complained one day, shaking his head. “I don’t get it. Do you really think that God didn’t hear you the first time?”Au contraire, mon ami: I am very sure indeed that God heard me the first time. I’ll even go a st...

In the Easter season the Church encourages us to read the Book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible. What does that book have to do with Fátima? It’s not that the apparitions of Mary at Fátima can help us decode the Book of Revelation with all its visions. But at a deeper level, Fátima is about the main message of that book: We are in the battle of our lives, but have no fear because in the end, God wins!Many people have tried to figure out what the various vision...

If there are children in any facet of your life, whether you’re a parent, a teacher, an aunt, or just the neighbor next door, then you know the constant refrain: “Don’t forget to say thank you!” Humans are by and large selfish creatures: we’re born wanting, but once we have whatever it is we want, then we’re off to wanting something else. And we forget to thank whomever gave us the thing that we wanted in the first place.Our culture clearly supports this wanti...

Wonder. Being in the moment. Feeling close to God. These are all ways that our kids experience spirituality; and they could teach us a thing or two. All we have to do, perhaps, is put their experiences into a context. Ignatian spirituality, for example.Ignatian spirituality is so simple, and so fulfilling, that it’s easy to introduce into the lives of children. In fact, children are closer to many aspects of Ignatian spirituality than we are! We’ve taken a step away from the close re...

Getting married in a Catholic Church involves more than just choosing a picturesque setting for the reception and colors for the bridesmaids to wear. It’s a significant decision, and a significant commitment, and one for which you need to prepare thoughtfully and prayerfully.Most of all, there are things that you need to know—and do!—well ahead of time.The first thing you need to do is contact the parish where you want to be married and let the priest there know of your intenti...

My friend Julie acts as my conscience in one particular way. When I feel like I’m dragging a little, not completely good in my skin, she’s quick to make a diagnosis: “You need to come to the gym with me!”I have to tell you: those aren’t words I particularly like to hear! I’d much rather sit home like a sloth and read a book. But the truth is that after I go to the gym, I do feel better. Sometimes a lot better. Julie is right: I need regular exercise if I want ...

I have a stack of them. People whose lives I’ve admired. People whose words have inspired me. People whose memory makes me want to be a better person, a holier person. Most of these heroes are people I’ve chosen through my encounters with them in various ways, through my readings, through my prayer, through observing their lives and accomplishments. The list is disparate: Oscar Romero, Dorothy Day, Lillian Hellman, Hildegard of Bingen, Julian of Norwich, Jimmy Carter, Pope Francis&he...

I wrote a prayer when I was eight or nine. I remember that I was in my bedroom and very worried. A very big question—for a very small person—was haunting me: What if I died and discovered that I had lost everything, that I had put all my good deeds into a bag with a hole in it? What if everything I believed about heaven wasn’t true?The shadows of that possibility have darkened the threshold of too many days of my life. The celebration of Good Friday and Easter, and the Feast of...