During this first week of January, the Catholic Church in the United States honors three saints who, at least for part of their lives, lived in our nation. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is honored on January 4th. She was raised Episcopalian, but converted to Catholicism as an adult. She was a wife and mother of […]
Ancient Saints, and their Relevance today
This last week of August, the Catholic Church honors several saints of the early Church — St. John the Baptist and St. Augustine of Hippo — but what do ancient saints have to teach us today in our post-modern world? St. John the Baptist was the forerunner of Jesus Christ (as well as his cousin) and […]
Daily Examination of Conscience
One of the most basic truths of the spiritual life is the importance of making a daily examination of conscience. As members of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Mercy, we strive to do this each night before going to bed. Why is the examination so important? It is for the sake of self-knowledge — […]
Mysteries of the Holy Triduum — Good Friday
Good Friday is a day on which Catholics have traditionally spent extra time in prayer and contemplation of the Passion and Death of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. For many of us, the sacred time of “the Three Hours” (Noon until 3:00 PM) is a time of silence and reflection — because these are […]
Mysteries of the Holy Triduum — Holy Thursday
The Holy Triduum (Three Days) of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter is the holiest time of the Christian year. How can we enter more deeply into the mysteries of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Our Lord during this sacred time? Holy Thursday is when the Church celebrates the solemn memorial of the Last […]
Importance of Silence
In our modern world, we are literally surrounded by noise. We have the sounds of computers, printers, radio, music, television, cars — you name it, we are surrounded by constant sounds. But we need silence in order to hear the “still, small voice, ” the “tiny, whispering sound” — the voice of God. Without silence, […]
St. Anthony of Egypt
The Church celebrates the feast day of St. Anthony of Egypt on January 17th. St. Anthony is called the “Father of Monasticism,” and is seen as the one of the great men known as the “Desert Fathers.” Anthony was born into a wealthy family, but after the death of his parents, he heard the call […]
The “O Antiphons” of Advent
One of the Church’s ancient liturgical traditions, dating back to at least the 8th century, is the use of the “O Antiphons” for this final week of Advent — our final preparation for the coming of Christ at Christmas. Each of these antiphons points to a Scriptural title of Christ found in the Book of […]
St. Monica & St. Augustine
One of the patron saints of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Mercy is St. Augustine of Hippo. He was chosen to be one of our patrons because he was a sinner – a sexual addict, who kept a mistress for about twenty years – who, through the Mercy of God was converted and became […]
Transfiguration of the Lord
On August 6th, the Church celebrated the mystery of the Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ upon Mount Tabor. Jesus had taken the “inner circle” of His disciples, Peter, James and John, up the mountain, and there “He was transfigured before them. And His clothes became dazzlingly white, such as no fuller on earth could […]
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