A group of Catholic ministers gathered last Friday to reflect on the ongoing clergy abuse and cover-up crisis. The pain that some ordained men inflicted on...
Sacraments
Discover articles exploring the theology, meaning, and practice of the sacraments in everyday Catholic life and parish communities.
I cried at my wedding. After we exchanged the vows I sat down next to Bill on the altar and the tears started. Unfortunately I’m not one of those dainty criers...
One summer afternoon, driving past a cemetery, I saw six bikers talking, laughing, and drinking beer, their motorcycles parked nearby. My initial indignation...
Our culture subscribes to some notions of “godparent” that don’t exactly advance the pastoral plan of the church for this essential ministry. Even people who...
Months before my wedding, my social media accounts started promoting photos of my off-the-rack wedding dress. The targeted advertising went to waste, however...
My friend recently asked me in an email conversation why I stay in the Catholic Church. “If that sounds confrontational, it’s not,” he wrote in his email. “At...
The moment was 79 years ago, but it is as fresh in my mind as if it were yesterday: I was a first grader in Catholic school and, as such, was expected to...
This spring, my son will receive his first communion. As this is our first child, we are filled with excitement at the prospect of our little boy participating...
Last fall, our son and the rest of his second grade class at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Fort Wayne, Indiana started preparing for their first communion. First...
I am a professor of theology, but I cannot tell you what sacraments are. The sacraments, you see, are not things that can be explained but acts that engage us...
