Mary’s Sacrifice: When Nothing Is Too Much
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
13h ago
This week a Gospel was about Mary of Bethany anointing the feet of Jesus. I love this outrageous gesture that expressed a wholehearted love. Mary, her sister Martha, and her brother Lazarus were Jesus’s best friends. He enjoyed their company and no doubt saw his visits to their home as a welcome respite.                   We first meet Mary at her home, curled up at the feet of Jesus, drinking in his every word. She assumed the position of a disciple, and Jesus praises her for her rapt attention to him. (Her ..read more
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St. Joseph, Second Greatest Saint, a Foster Father
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
1w ago
In a humorous video on Facebook, a man lamented that St. Patrick’s feast was celebrated in grand style, while the Solemnity of St. Joseph two days later was observed quietly. This subdued celebration reflects the personality of the foster father of Jesus. The Gospels report not one word that he spoke. (By the way, the greatest saint is not St. Patrick, but Joseph’s wife, Mary.)                   Joseph was the right partner for the most powerful woman on earth. Theirs was a match made in heaven. This humble c ..read more
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In Praise of Life
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
2w ago
As I grow older, I’m valuing the gift of life more and more. As Ferris Bueller said, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” This echoes Psalm 90: “Our life is over like a sigh. Our span is seventy years or eighty for those who are strong….Make us know the shortness of our life that we may gain wisdom of heart.” The Hubble telescope that NASA gave us an awesome view of the galaxy Andromeda, the one closest to us. It makes you dizzy. Each dot is a star, many bigger than our sun. And there are billions of them. Beyond Andromeda there are z ..read more
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A Jesus Who Laughs
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
3w ago
Since Jesus is true man, he must have had a funny bone. The gospels don’t record times when Jesus laughed, grinned, or even smiled. Still, it’s easy to think of his joy in certain situations. – As a baby, he must have laughed, as babies do, when Joseph tossed him in the air or as Mary tickled him. – Playing games with the other boys in Nazareth, he must have laughed. Jesus must have smiled . . . – at the servants’ amazed faces when they discovered wine in the water jars – when he blessed the children after the apostles tried to chase them away – as he returned Jairus’s daughter to him – when ..read more
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God’s Forgiveness & Our Mercy
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
1M ago
This week on Wednesday evening all churches in the Cleveland Diocese will be open for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, a Lenten tradition. No matter how sinful, a person can experience the mercy of God. During Holy Week we will ponder the climax of God’s mercy: washing everyone clean by the blood of his Son. Years ago, wearing my black habit, I sat on a window ledge in Chicago, waiting for a bus when an elderly gentleman sat beside me. He introduced himself as Herbert and told me he was a former gangster who had been at the Valentine’s Day massacre. “But as a kid, I went to Catholic school ..read more
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A Rest Test for the Stressed
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
1M ago
Some (or most) days do you feel trapped in a hamster wheel? Your to-do list is a mile long. Taking a break, a rest, or, horrors, a nap seem out of the question. You are depressed, anxious, and feel an ulcer coming on. You don’t remember when you last laughed, had a good time with friends, or dabbled in your hobby. Beware! Rest is as essential as food and exercise. It keeps you energized, productive, creative, healthy, and happy. Henry David Thoreau said, “The really efficient laborer will be found not to crowd his day with work, but will saunter to his task surrounded by a wide halo of ease a ..read more
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Love Divine, All Loves Excelling
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
1M ago
Today in honor of Valentine’s Day I’ve assembled a collection of quotations about God’s love for us. These are from my book A Love Affair with God, Twelve Traits. This February 14 is also Ash Wednesday. We are on the threshold of Lent, a season when we prepare ourselves to commemorate God’s stupendous act of love on Calvary and in the garden tomb. May you take time to ponder and relish the following reflections on God’s love and the love we reciprocate: Advice from the outstanding Catholic author and philosopher G.K. Chesterton: Let your religion be less of a theory and more of a love affair ..read more
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Me? Perfect? Growing in Virtue
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
1M ago
An indicator When I entered the convent, we received a chain of beads called an indicator to pin to our side. During the day we moved a bead up every time we did a good deed. This device was to motivate us to make progress in the spiritual life, to become virtuous women.             Holiness is not reserved for canonized saints. God intends all of us ordinary folk to be holy, that is, virtuous, and so make it through heaven’s gates. Jesus said, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). Face it. We will n ..read more
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True Blue Friends
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
2M ago
How many friends do you have on Facebook? Thousands? Many of these are not really friends, right?  I venture to say that most people have no more good friends than you can count on one hand. A friend is a person who is very close to you. One definition is “someone who knows all about you and likes you anyway!” An Arabian proverb puts it this way: “A friend is one to whom one may pour out all the contents of one’s heart, chaff and grain together, knowing that the gentlest of hands will take and sift it, keep what is worth keeping, and with a breath of kindness blow the rest away.”   ..read more
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Art as a Springboard to Prayer
Catholic Faith Corner
by srkathleen
2M ago
Rose Window in Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris Long ago illiterate people relied on art to learn the faith. Churches were filled with sacred stained-glass windows and statues meant to convey truths and religious stories visually. Their beauty also lifted minds to God. As a child, I had a holy card collection, many of them with sacred art. Did you?                   Viewing art is more than an intellectual experience. It has power to move our hearts. Think Michelangelo’s Pieta, Salvador Dali’s Christ of St. John of ..read more
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