Advent, the four-week period preceding Christmas, starts Dec. 2 and is a time to slow down as we wait in hopeful expectation for Christ’s coming. It’s a time to take stock of what’s important in our lives, casting away extra commitments and wasted energy we’ve added throughout the year.
Read MoreI am thrilled to announce that I have a story in POPE FRANCIS’s new book SHARING THE WISDOM OF TIME!
Read More“As a child I felt God’s presence strongly. I remember digging in my sandbox with Jesus or reading a picture book with him. It seemed every good thing was a delight God had left just for me to discover. I felt assured of God’s love as I felt his presence close.”
Read More"Through the artwork and the conversations, God’s word came alive"
Read MoreCreating space for silence with my children and learning that maybe silence isn't so scary.
Read More“Listen” I whispered, wanting them to hear the waves breaking in the cove on the other side of the cottage. But in the quiet, we heard something else.
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My reflection for Ignatian Spirituality on Finding God in All Things...even birds. Read my reflection here.
“After a busy week, not just my body, but my soul cries out for rest—a Sabbath. Just as God took a day of rest after six days of creation, he invites us to set apart, to make holy, a day for rest.”
Read MoreMy book list for a Spiritual Summer Reads for Catholic News Service.
Read More“What can I do to help?” It is difficult for me to answer when in the throws of depression. So I let my nearest and dearest know ahead of time what they can do to help.
Read MoreAs engaged couples prepare themselves for marriage, they look for advice for a rich and loving union. The best advice for engaged couples comes from Pope Francis himself in his apostolic exhortation “Amoris Laetitia” (“The Joy of Love”).
Read More“Who do you imagine as a spiritual director?” Carla, the coordinator at my local Ignatian Spirituality Center asked. I started to laugh as the image of Don Porter, the actor who played Sally Field’s father on the television show, “Gidget” flashed in my mind.
Read MoreIt doesn’t matter what you sound like, just sing to God with the voice God gave you
Read MorePoet Chris Anderson speaks of the Examen in this way: “The light of grace is always shining, it’s always pouring down, through it’s refracted and scattered and easy to miss, and so one way to pray is to look back on the moments of our day and recall when we saw the light breaking through.”
Read MoreSpiritual writer, Kathleen Norris, in her book, "The Cloister Walk," shares her Holy Week schedule. It includes morning prayers, choir rehearsal, evening liturgy services but what I really noticed, was right smack in the middle of her afternoons, she wrote "NAP!!!" Yes, in capital letters and extra exclamation points.
Read More“What? Oh, yeah, no problem mija.” He says as the phone rings. I would not sit on his lap that night, I never did on fight nights. “Phil here.” he answered the phone. “Uh huh, uh huh.” He grunted as he jot down a few words and numbers.
Read MorePoet John O’Donohue defined beauty as “that in the presence of which we feel more alive”. But not only that, beauty is a connection, that when we experience it, we feel a sense of love, the presence of God’s love.
Read More“What’s holding you back?” she asked over a turkey sandwich.
“I not sure if I believe in Transubstantiation.” I said solemnly over a sip of tomato soup.
“Ha!” she laughed, her mouth open, revealing the unchewed bite of sandwich in the side of her cheek. “That’s not it!” she said loudly drawing a few looks from the other patrons at the bistro.
Read MoreThrives on moments where storytelling, art and faith collide.
I must pinch myself that I am part of this collection from Ignatius Press ! It comes out next month but is available for preorder now.
How easily we forget that we are, at every moment, shaped with care by a Creator. Artists, however—who know intimately the blood, sweat, and tears of the creative process—can help us sense how marvelous it is to be created: the patience, the detail, the joy. In this essential collection, thirty-one Christian artists from various disciplines, from music to poetry to film to sculpture, offer personal essays on the strange experience of following God’s lead by making beautiful things.
Goldberg is much more practical than many of the texts that I have read. She gives you much to hold onto.
If you know me, you know I love encounters with strangers. Here is one that left me encouraged.
First time writing for Catholic World Report. I have wanted to tell this story for a long time. Read my essay on the theology of the body as it pertains to our last moments here on earth.
If we keep our eyes on Jesus, small acts of service and love, like those lived out by St. Francis Xavier, will reap more rewards than we could ever imagine.