Most events in life require preparation. When you go on a trip, you get to the airport early so you can get through security. When you go to a concert or sporting event, you arrive early to find your seat. When you host a party, you make sure you have all the right food and supplies.
"You … must be perfect," Jesus insisted, "as your heavenly Father is perfect" (Mt 5:48). Without such perfect holiness, Scripture says, "no one will see the Lord (in heaven)" (Heb 12:14), because "nothing unclean shall enter it" (Rv 21:27). But how many of us will have become perfect by the time we die, making us ready for heaven?
At the end of our earthly lives, our faith tells us there will be four last things: death, judgment, hell and heaven. Reflecting on such ominous topics in the month in November can seem quite appropriate for both the pessimist and the optimist alike.
He'd lost his father, and he did not want to stop grieving. My friend feared that soon he wouldn't feel so heartbroken, because that would mean "I was forgetting him."
In 1997, the critically acclaimed science fiction film "Gattaca" depicted a genetically stratified dystopia in which the genetically engineered class ruled over those who had been born naturally. At the time, some bioethicists such as James Hughes scoffed at the film's depiction of "designer babies" as "fear-mongering." A little over 20 years later, its science fiction is quickly approaching this reality. If the 2022 documentary "Make People Better" is any indication, this kind of experimentation is already happening.
Voting: It is one of our most important responsibilities as citizens. Indeed, the church teaches that there are three primary responsibilities of all citizens: to pay taxes, to defend their country and to vote.
Even though the Bible was written ages ago, its pages always have meanings and messages for us today. Our challenge is to find connections between the text of yesterday and the "today" of our lives. There are five parts to "lectio divina" -- holy reading -- which is an ancient way of praying with Scripture. Those parts are listening, understanding, reflecting, praying and acting.
The Catholic Church has dedicated numerous feast days throughout the year to events in the life of Mary and her various titles. The following are some of the feasts of Mary in the month of May:
Father Benedict Groeschel, a founder of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, pointed out in his book "In the Presence of Our Lord: The History, Theology, and Psychology of Eucharistic Devotion" that there are "four kinds of prayer most appropriate in the presence of the Eucharist, namely adoration and praise, thanksgiving, repentance, and trusting intercession."
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.
