Faith Alive

It's easy for Catholics to take the rosary for granted. We tend to purchase them as souvenirs, or carry them around with us, or even wear them -- but we forget the immense power that they have when we actually pray them. And that's really too bad, because a devotion to the rosary can be the answer to so many struggles in our 21st-century world.

In his passion, Jesus’ sufferings were unequaled. For the Son of God offered himself as a sacrifice for all. No one, not even the saintliest person, can take on the sins of all people in every time and place. Only God can, and did.

As we enter into the holiest week of the liturgical year, the reflection of Jesus’ obedience to the Father’s will comes into full focus. St. Paul, in his Letter to the Philippians, elaborates, “He humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2:8).

"Love ought to show itself more in deeds rather than words." -- St. Ignatius of Loyola

Most Catholics are intimately aware of the three pillars of Lenten practice -- prayer, fasting and almsgiving. And in these unprecedented times that have become the new normal, that call to prayer, fasting and, yes, even almsgiving, remains.

In the beginning, fasting was no big deal -- or at least it shouldn't have been.

I know that I am not the only one for whom this year has been full of unpredictable moments. More than anything, this year has reminded me how completely out of control I am. I've found myself especially drawn to the changing of the seasons, I think, in part, because of the predictability they've offered.

I was in the town of Santiago Atitlan, Guatemala. With a backdrop of two volcanic mountains and facing one of the most beautiful lakes in the world, it was a picturesque place. It was also where, in 1981, Father Stanley Rother became the first American citizen to be martyred.