Breath has long been a way I could steady myself in anxious moments. When the pandemic hit the world, in Ireland where I live we went into full lockdown off...
Practicing Catholic
With confusion and anticipation, I watched Daniel make his way to the large crucifix that rested on risers for veneration. He moved on his knees toward the...
Picture this: a warm midspring morning, predawn. Nobody is awake. The birds chirp. The trees gently rustle. The air is fresh. The world is coated with a light...
I am a descendant of French Canadian, English, and Italian immigrants. My ancestors came to the United States by boat, by train, and on horseback in search of...
It was December and the night was crisp and chilly. From my doorway I watched in awe as a magnificent scene unfolded before me. A candlelight procession of...
Every year, as soon as Advent arrived, my parents would tell stories about how Christmas was celebrated “back home” in the Philippines, where they had been...
Even though I grew up Catholics in the 1950s and ’60s, I was only remotely familiar with the custom of the Advent wreath. One or two years during my childhood...
With All Souls Day and All Saints Day fast approaching, the editors of U.S. Catholic took a deep dive into the archives to compile some of our best articles...
I love to look at the stars. On the night leading into my birthday last year, there was a lunar eclipse and a blood moon. I opened a window in my living...
Several years ago, my brother and I found ourselves in the throes of that middle-aged rite of passage—the clearing out of our parents’ house—not long after...
