Being Thankful in Tough Times Just over a week ago we celebrated Veteran’s Day, but those of a certain age will remember that November 11th also celebrated Armistice Day; famous in the midwest for the powerful blizzard, but also of course the day World War I ended. Though at the time considered the “war to …
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Trusting in the Teaching Authority of the Church Cardinal John Heenan, who was the Archbishop of Westminster, England, was once asked what makes the Catholic Church distinctive. You might think he would say love or compassion. These are certainly parts of the faith, but he said something a bit startling: authority. As another preacher pointed …
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The Giving Tree helps families in most need of holiday gift giving support. This year the Giving Tree will be supporting local families through St. Joseph, CAP Agency, Alliance, Lewis House, Pregnancy Choices, and Angel Tree. These organizations have asked for all Gift Cards for specific stores rather than gifts this year to encourage safety …
Preparation for Heaven is a Daily Thing Among the great blessings in my life was that I was raised in a wonderful family. From an early age, I learned so much about the faith and how to live it out through my mom and dad. Both worked hard to provide for the family. They would …
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All Saints, All Souls, and a Catholic Understanding of Death Thirteen years ago, I went with my class in seminary to Rome. We had the chance to tour quite a bit of churches, but one was pretty unique. It’s known as the Capuchin Crypt, or Santa Maria della Concezione dei Cappuccini, AKA the “bone church.” …
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A Great Team Helps Make a Great Parish When you look at all that happens at Saint Joseph’s, it really is a hub of activity. From faith formation to parish events to our incredible school and amazing music ministry to keeping the building maintained and clean all while the books are balanced takes an incredible …
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Don’t Let God’s Invitation go into the Junk Mail Pile When I was in second grade, on a winter’s day, Sister Charlene, our teacher, would at times take our class across the street into the church. She would talk about some of the things in the church itself; and as in second grade we celebrate …
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Be Aware of Fake (Catholic) News Some years ago when I was in the seminary, I was serving briefly at a parish during a January term. The parish had a Hispanic community, and one of the priests at the parish mentioned to me as we were going through town that an evangelical church had an …
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Keeping Calm through the Storms of Life In this week’s second reading from Saint Paul to the Philippians, we hear the verse “have no anxiety at all.” It might sound easier said than done, but consider the author, Saint Paul, went through just about everything you can imagine; being thrown in prison, shipwrecked, physically assaulted …
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Identifying and Overcoming Envy As we grow up, most all of us experience others having more than we do. Sometimes it’s the neighbor kid with a swimming pool or the latest video game system; or maybe the older sibling gets new clothing while the younger sibling gets more “hand-me-downs.” Sometimes as we age the neighbor …
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