Writing these reflections always involves what is happening in the world around me and in my life. During May, I have been bombarded with a variety of situations which caused me to react rather than to respond. The prime minister of Hungary was welcomed at the White House. He is a person who has …
This Advent I had the privilege of designing and leading a retreat day for one of our downtown parishes. The theme was “Living the Incarnation Today: the Union of the Human and the Divine.” The parishioners and others who joined us made me proud that I am a Catholic. Their diversity spoke to who we …
Embraced and enveloped are the words that came to me as I drove Highway 24 west from Hanksville into Capitol Reef National Park in Utah. The rock formations — squat, rounded, multilayered gray and red — brought a smile to my face. I couldn’t seem to get enough of them. I drank it in and let it …
When I was little I couldn’t wait until I was old enough to participate in the various liturgical rituals during Holy Week. Processing in the choir on Holy Thursday singing “Pange Lingua,” attending the Good Friday three-hour ritual in the afternoon, and waiting all day Saturday until midnight to celebrate the Easter Vigil. Perhaps most …
Many of you are probably familiar with a mandala. It is a spiritual and ritual symbol primarily used in Hinduism and Buddhism, representing the universe. It has become popular in retreats where one is invited to draw a mandala or to color in one that is already drawn. As I was reading Pema Chodron’s book, Living Beautifully with …
In one of the post-Resurrection accounts in the Scripture (John 21) some of the disciples went fishing with Peter. All night they caught nothing. Then at daybreak, Jesus — who was standing on the shore, though none of the disciples recognized him — asked if they had caught anything. They answered that they had caught …
As President Donald Trump begins to roll out in rapid fire the many executive orders seeking to overturn decisions not only of the Obama Administration but programs and policies that have been in place for decades, I find myself seeking to understand the larger picture. Taking a long loving look at all that is going …
Because of my ministries I have never lived near relatives or my grade school friends as their children grew up. Recently my cousin moved to Lansing, Michigan, not too far from Detroit. One of her many grandchildren was making his first Holy Communion, and I was invited to attend. I accepted, and as I drove …
An image swept over me toward the close of the Parliament of World Religions last month. I was swimming in the ocean. I saw the larger known creatures closer to the surface — whales, dolphins, swordfish — then I began going deeper seeing species of fish I didn’t even know existed. The variety of colors and shapes …
The swirl that I found myself in when I visited Washington, D.C. during the Pope Francis’ visit to the United States brought to mind Jesuit Fr. Bill Callahan, who in the early 1980s coined the phrase “noisy contemplation.” It was a clear call that we can all pray all the time no matter how hectic …
Pope Francis’ encyclical,”Laudato Si’ , on Care For Our Common Home,” unequivocally names human behavior as a major cause of global climate change and urges all sectors of society to examine our actions, policies and behaviors in light of this urgent situation. It speaks to how the cry of the Earth and the cry of the poor …
“Prayer. The world’s greatest wireless connection.” Those words on a sweatshirt greeted me as I opened a gift from my sister. I immediately thought this conveys one aspect of how we understand exercising contemplative power. Think about it. When we are on the Internet, we have instant access to almost anyone on this planet. Through …
