Latest Articles
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When All Else Fails
When all else fails, read the directions. In this case, the directions are the gospels, because the failure we are facing here is desolation, and perhaps some burdens in our conscience. So the first thing to do is to make sure God—who is your Invincible, Eternal, Friendly Father, Brother, and Spirit—is not being offended by something…
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If Nothing Else, This
If we get nothing else clear now, we need to get this clear in our heads and in our actions: The distinction between natural and supernatural is in our minds and thoughts. It is not in our living selves and in our Christian lives. The two, nature and grace, are not two different existing things, they are…
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A Story to Keep in Mind
My mother taught kindergarten at Holy Name in New Orleans. She taught for more than twenty years. One of her more memorable events was having an active lad named Hamilton in class. It was “Hamilton, sit down”—”Hamilton, don’t pull her hair” – “Hamilton, Hamilton, Hamilton…” Next year, my mother was on the yard one afternoon…
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The Greatest: Love
We have now seen the three virtues that are irreplaceable in the follower of Jesus: faith, hope, and love. But as St Paul pointed out, the greatest of these is love. O Lord our God,You are the God of loveand You are calling meto live in loveif I will just embracewho You are making me.I…
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Living with Hope
O my God, I hope to live each moment of my life in Your Presence, aware of Your Holy Spirit at work in my heart and in the world around me. I hope that everything I do is pleasing to You and helps build Your kingdom on this earth. I hope to live lifelong in…
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An Act of Faith
One of the surprises of my later life was being moved by the Holy Spirit to pray prayers that enact faith, hope, and love. Anyone my age had learned the formulas in the Catechism. Those were written explicitly for the young, for children. So here is an Act of Faith that is for the mature Christian:…
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The Savior’s Last Supper
The Savior’s Last Supper was the most important of all His suppers. He gave His friends the Eucharist at that supper. This can hardly be something Jesus thought of only as they were sitting there at dinner (an idea I have heard vaguely preached). Jesus had already told them what was about to happen to Him….
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The Greatest YES
No YES in the whole of human history is as consequential as Mary’s to the angel. Her yes stands alone, above and beyond any king’s or queen’s or pope’s or pauper’s. With her Yes, Mary divides the whole of human history in two—before it and after it. We are blessed to be after it We…
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With You All Days
Here at St. Ignatius Hall, the sixty-some Jesuits do not concelebrate at our daily community Mass. Rather, we attend Mass. This proved quite a change for me who was accustomed to celebrate Mass daily, often by myself. I was living the tradition of some great priests who would find a way to celebrate Mass even…
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The First Last Supper
The Savior’s Last Supper was in a real sense the First Savior’s Supper—in the sense that Jesus instituted the Eucharist at that supper. This can hardly be something Jesus thought of only as they were sitting there at dinner (an idea I have heard vaguely preached). Jesus had already told them what was about to…