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...
Sacraments
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...
For many Catholics, the word liturgy brings to mind processionals with incense and a crucifix, Eucharistic prayers, or the Communion Rite. Vestments, incense...
In the ancient Near East, olive oil was used for healing, sealing, and strengthening. Athletes in ancient Greece would use it to limber up and soothe their...
There’s an old joke about two pastors discussing the problem of bats in the attic of their respective churches. “I’ve tried everything,” Father Brown complains...
The gasps are audible at our Easter Vigil, when adults in parishes are baptized in cleverly disguised wading pools: “Was it really necessary to ruin their...
What began with giving a doll the sacrament of the sick ended up as a real-life lesson. At the end of each school day, my first-grade students loved to play a...
Will the Synod on the Family bring change for divorced and remarried Catholics? One influential reform-minded cardinal hopes so. With the first of two meetings...
When I entered the confessional that day I assumed I would be absolved of whatever transgressions I chose to reveal. From what I’ve been told, Father Charles...
