by Sr. Anne Joan Flanagan, FSPGod loved us first (cf. 1 John 4:10).That is the message of the coming Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception on December 8th, the day we praise God for the way his grace enfolded the Virgin Mary from the first moment of her existence, without any merit of hers. Mary's Immaculate Conception (her being created and sustained in grace, without any trace of original sin) was the first ray of the "dawn from on high" that brought the world the unsurpassable expression of ...

You may have noticed the latest trend in Keep Calm T-Shirts and even Facebook posts: Keep Calm I'm a Nurse, Keep Calm and Carry On, Keep Calm and Let the Chef Handle It, Keep Calm It's My 40th Birthday Today.... Anyone can go on zazzle.com and create their own Keep Calm T-Shirt message. I’m visiting my family these few weeks and these Keep Calm messages have caught my attention.In reality, however, there are lots of events, that can shatter our calm and leave us feeling anxious, on edge, even i...

A couple years ago I went to a Theology of the Body (TOB) Congress in Philadelphia. One thing stood out for me: so many people I talked to said that learning about TOB had made their life happier. I recall one man who was an ordinary Catholic guy—I’ll call him Joe from New Jersey. He said that his wife had started listening to talks about TOB and was very enthusiastic about it. He wasn’t too interested at first. His wife, however, would play the CDs when the two of them were in the car. After...

Answering the Call to Be a Young Adult Writerby Leslea Wahl; author of The Perfect BlindsideI’ve always enjoyed writing. For as long as I can remember I have been a creator of stories and have had ideas swirling through my head. Though I liked writing, I didn’t really pursue it. For years I followed other interests, but I was always drawn to writing. When I worked I wrote articles for in-house publications. I contributed to newsletters for organizations I volunteered with. I wrote summer learn...

In the dining room of our house is an unassuming depiction of the Sacred Heart of Jesus embroidered by my grandmother. I can’t remember a time when it hasn’t graced the walls of our home. Beneath it is a simple glass shelf, a small votive candle, and a pamphlet about the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart in the home. Another image of the Sacred Heart stands out from my childhood. In St. James Church, our parish, to the right of the main altar was a marble statue of the Sacred Heart. I often wou...

If there is one word that has characterized the pontificate of Pope Francis, it is the word mercy. As St. John Paul II before him—who called for a recourse to mercy “in this difficult, critical phase of the history of the Church and of the world” (Dives in Misericordia, 15)—Pope Francis has looked out onto today’s world situation and called for a revolution in tenderness. We see Francis modeling this revolution in his actions, in his gaze, in his words…all of which have captured the imagin...

You may be familiar with the passage in the Gospel of Matthew, where Mary and several family members approach Jesus while he is preaching. A disciple tells Jesus that his mother and family are there to speak with him. Jesus looks at his disciples, extends his arm, and says, “Who is my mother?” He goes on to say, “For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother” (Mt 12:48, 50). At first glance it may sound as if Jesus is disparaging his mother. One imagine...

Do you know someone who has left the Church?  Who do you ask to pray for your loved ones? Sometimes St. Monica is invoked on behalf of children who have strayed from the faith. And she definitely can be a powerful intercessor. But there is another intercessor we should never forget when we pray for friends and family who have left the Church: our Blessed Mother. Here are some reasons why: 1. Mary is Our Loved Ones’ Mother:  I once had a very strong prayer expe...

One of the most beautiful aspects of community life is the way it becomes another family that includes one's family of origin. A sister's mom was here over the past three weeks, baking every sort of yummy deliciousness that any granny would provide for her children--although on a rather large scale, there being 70+ eager hands reaching for the brownies. When there is a family crisis, we're on it for prayers. Everybody in community followed my sister's 30-year search for a husband and rejoiced wh...

To understand God’s call for us, we need to also understand how God sees us; we have to understand our “backstory” (to put it in storytelling terms) or where we come from.How does God see us? Most simply put, we have been loved into being:There is one truth for believers that, no matter how much our wounded nature might try, cannot be twisted. This truth is that God chose to create each of us. There is something so unique and wonderful about us that God wants to share his life with us. God wa...