The first of the spiritual works of mercy is “Instruct the Ignorant.” We sometimes think that it is an insult to say that someone is ignorant, but in reality, it simply means that the person is without knowledge — of something that they would benefit from knowing. To give knowledge — to give someone the […]
Corporal Works of Mercy: Feed the Hungry
The first of the Corporal Works of Mercy (“corporal” is derived from “corpus,” Latin for “body” = Bodily works of Mercy) is the Feed the Hungry. In a day and age in which millions of people go without basic food — as the result of famines, hurricanes, earthquakes, wars and deliberate starvation by corrupt and […]
Prayer, Fasting and Mercy
From a sermon by St. Peter Chrysologus, Bishop and Doctor of the Church: There are three things, my brethren, by which faith stands firm, devotion remains constant, and virtue endures. They are prayer, fasting and mercy. Prayer knocks at the door, fasting obtains, mercy receives. Prayer, mercy and fasting: these three are one, and they […]
St. Margaret of Cortona’s Feast Day
The Church just celebrated the feast day of one of our patron saints, St. Margaret of Cortona. Have you read much about her life? A good place to start is this article from our website: “Horror of Sin and the Mercy of God” Please take the time to read this article, and then maybe do […]
Courageous Love for Christ: St. Thomas Aquinas
St. Thomas Aquinas is best known for being the Church’s greatest theologian. He wrote two “Summas” of theology which have been of tremendous importance to the Church ever since his the 13th century. But he was a man who was immersed in Sacred Scripture as well — he wrote many commentaries on different books of […]
And the Word was made Flesh
“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory of the Father’s only begotten Son…” The Christmas season is for many people a time for celebration with family, for good food, and for football. Some people even go to Church (maybe it’s the only day of the […]
Reflections on Right-to-Life Banquet
Last night (October 16), I attended the annual banquet of Right-to-Life of Owensboro (Kentucky). What a wonderful event — to see 800 or more men and women (and a good number of teenagers) who would come out for an evening to celebrate the sanctity of human life! It was a joy-filled occasion. Not only was […]
If Only I Lived in the Old Days
Have you ever thought that? Wondered how much better things might be in life if we just lived a few hundred years ago? I know that I have! It seems like things were so much easier…. WRONG! They weren’t easier! Think of how many inventions we now have that make life easier – washing machines, […]
July – Month of the Precious Blood
There is a tradition that certain months of the year are associated with particular feasts of the Church, particular aspects of our Faith. The month of July has traditionally been the month in which the Precious Blood of our Savior, Jesus Christ, is honored — that blood which was poured out upon the Cross for […]
Hard to Forgive
Father Jim Costigan, CPM Some things are easy to forgive. A fan mistakes you for the reigning Miss America, you correct him, then he graciously apologizes — that’s pretty easy to forgive. But then there’s the friend who didn’t keep your secret, the woman who stole your man, the date who raped you, the man […]