PRE-PRAYERING||We show our appreciation for musical and dramatic renditions by enthusiastic applause which can go on just a certain length of time. Who decides when the applause should begin to die down and cease? We all ...

Several weeks ago I had the good fortune to attend a gathering of Ignatian Associates, a lay group committed to apostolic availability, fidelity to the Gospel and simplicity.  People came to the Creighton Retreat Center ...

"Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him."|As I sat with these readings several weeks ago, all's I could think of was how the Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years.  Were they so hard ...

In the times of great persecutions of the early Church, there were so many martyrs that it was impossible to commemorate each one on an individual day. Eventually, when the Church was given an old Roman temple to "All the ...

|Even those of us who are not Biblical scholars likely know the story from today's Gospel, in which a man with Leprosy begs Jesus to make him clean. "Lord, if you wish…."… and of course, our Lord graced the man with a cure. ...

When my son reads a book, he gets lost. Oblivious to the world around him, he will become so engrossed in the story in his hands, that he doesn't hear doorbells, conversations or the normal clatter of life in a busy home. ...

In examining today's Gospel reading, two major themes emerge. The first is the announcement by Jesus of his impending death and resurrection. This is the second time that Jesus mentions his death and resurrection; the first ...

The death penalty is a topic of much discussion in the United States today. Many states, and now even the federal government, invoke the death penalty to punish those convicted of terrible crimes. A fierce debate rages ...

In today's gospel, Jesus foretells his death and resurrection and the disciples were "overwhelmed with grief." I try to put myself in that scene, to imagine how I would respond. First Jesus says he will be handed over to ...

Both today's first reading and the life and witness of St. Clare of Assisi, whose feast the Church celebrates today, challenge me to reflect on the call to accompany the poor.||Moses reminds the Israelites how beloved and ...