We know almost nothing about St. Joseph. Scripture tells us relatively little, and pious tradition should be taken with a grain of salt. But what we do know about his life can be a great help and consolation to one who is in the turmoil of...
When Pope Francis was a young seminarian in his twenties, he had to think about celibacy very carefully. A few years ago, when he was a cardinal, he recalled in an interview: "I was dazzled by a girl I met at an uncle's wedding...
The extreme heroism of a few priests is well known. You've heard stories of priests who were martyred, or sacrificed their own lives for others, or endured great hardships for the sake of the Gospel. Imagine a man who comes home to see his house on...
In a previous E-Newsletter, we talked about what prayer is (and is not). This article focuses more specifically on how to pray. To begin, here are some important points to consider: Rely on God. We can’t develop a relationship with God by ourselves. We must rely on...
Becoming a mountain-climber is not a one-time event. You don’t just “go climb a mountain” without ever having done it before. It takes knowledge, hours of practice, patience and perseverance. It’s hard work! But what compels a man to climb a mountain? If he’s never been...
Can you imagine the Church today without the influence of one of the greatest priest-saints of the 19th century, St. John Vianney? It easily could have happened. The world could have been completely unaware of the existence of the man named Jean Marie Vianney, if he...
We live in an age when life moves fast, information comes nonstop, and sometimes it may seem the best way to deal with millions of options is not to lock into any of them. That’s the consensus of a number of studies on fear of commitment,...
Many saints struggled with temptations; some even led very sinful lives prior to their conversions. As St. Paul said, “I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate” (Rom 7:15). What does this tell us about holiness? We become holy...
We hear a lot about how important prayer is in the Christian life, and especially when discerning one’s vocation. It’s the the essential way we connect with God. So it’s obvious that prayer is important — but maybe it’s less obvious what prayer actually is. Understanding prayer...