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The Moment Is Almost Here
A Reflection for the Fourth Sunday Of Advent The moment is almost here. “The mystery kept secret for long ages…[is soon to be] manifested” (Rom 16:25). Before we race ahead, though, let us linger a bit more on today’s mystery. If we are not careful, we can...
Encountering the Father’s Heart of Saint Joseph
The 150th anniversary of the proclamation of Saint Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church was celebrated on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception this month. In honor of that anniversary, Pope Francis declared this liturgical year to be dedicated to Saint...
How to Get the Gaudete (Joy) Out of Advent
Can you believe we just lit the pink candle and it’s already the third week of Advent? Advent, of course, means “coming.” It’s a time set aside for the Bride (the Church) to prepare herself for the coming of the Bridegroom (Christ). The cause of the Church’s joy on...
What Is the Church Really Saying with Advent?
The Advent season — and the Third Sunday of Advent, or Rejoicing Sunday, in particular! — is both a joyful and a difficult season, a season of preparing for the Coming of the Lord. “Prepare the way of the Lord!” St. John the Baptist cries out in...
Beyond the Blue Plaster Statue: An Advent Reflection on the Most Beautiful (and Most Fragrant!) Woman Who Ever Lived
Creator created God so humbled Enclosed in the womb of a poor young girl Crying out, God, God, you are crazy! And with enflamed desire I go searching for who this young woman is Who joined the Lover to the beloved Looking at her from her head down to her feet So...
‘The End Is Near’
How many times have we seen a movie or a TV show with the iconic “crazy” person on a street corner wearing a placard with “The End is Near” scribbled on it? And how many times have we quickly dismissed that person as extreme, ludicrous, ultimately sad? But have you...
Three Favorite Quotes from Father Raneiro Cantalamessa
I have long admired the insights of the papal preacher Father Raneiro Cantalamessa, who will be made a cardinal this Saturday, Nov. 28. Here are three of my favorite quotes from him: “I do not need to look outside myself for proof that God loves me; I, myself, am...
Meeting Pope John Paul II
[NOTE: As we honor the Feast of St. John Paul II on October 22, TOB Institute's Bill Donaghy remembers when he met Pope John Paul II during the Jubilee Year 2000.] In October of the Jubilee Year 2000, a World Mission Congress was held in Rome. Hundreds of missionaries...
Should Teresa of Avila’s Spirituality Be Held Out as a Model for All?
Rome, Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria of Ecstasy of St Theresa, by Bernini Gian Lorenzo, 1644 - 1652, 17th Century, marble Teresa of Avila — next to Mary the Mother of God, she may be the most famous mystic bride in Church history. When Jesus praised the wise...
Saints Joachim and Anne: The Icon of Marital Love
Several years ago, while a Byzantine Catholic priest was giving me a tour of his church, I spotted a large, prominent icon of a couple embracing. Looking closer, I realized there was a marriage bed behind them. It was clear that this was a beautifully chaste portrayal...
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