For all the great things the Church of yesteryear achieved it also did some terrible things One of the worst demands it made was that a Catholic who marries a person who is not a Catholic do so at a side altar oratory or in the sacristy of the Church How humiliating this directive was For how l

The birth of John was miraculous Luke tells us his parents were beyond the age of having children Elizabeth John s mother was sterile Still miraculously John leaped in his mother s womb at the presence of Jesus in the womb of Mary That John is mentioned in the Gospels at all is miraculou

A few years ago there was an English film entitled Secrets and Lies It charted the story of a dysfunctional family who sat on terrible secrets and told many lies for decades Like many successful dramatic films audiences flocked to see it not only because of its compelling story but also bec

The preaching of the good news is like one beggar telling another where to find food This is an arresting aphoristic definition of unknown origin likely to give pause to an aspiring Bossuet Such a definition well illustrates Mary Catherine Hilkert s fundamental point that Every preacher has a

Summer reading lists have appeared in the last few weeks giving readers especially beach-going ones suggestions for enhancing their leisure time As strange as it might sound I m using today s blog to recommend adding the Bible to your summer-reading list One of the most significant trend

It is in the Acts of the Apostles that we hear most about Barnabas He is famous as a preaching companion with Paul in present-day Turkey with all the attendant success failure and persecution of Paul Prior to that he was grouped with Christians at Antioch who were known as having special gifts