The devotion to the Heart of Mary had a long history before the revelations of Our Lady of Fatima. But — as with the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which took on a whole new dimension with the … Continue reading
Category: Spiritual Life
Catholics, Protestants, Grace, and the Spiritual Life
This paper answers the following question: Given what Catholics believe about grace, merit and justification, why is it much more logical for Catholics to have treatises on progress in the practice of the presence of God and growth in mystical … Continue reading
Mary at Bethlehem, by Saint Peter Julian Eymard
Saint Peter Julian Eymard (1811-1868) was born at La Mure, a little town in the diocese of Grenoble, France. His entire life from his infancy to his death was a perpetual hymn of praise in honor of the Blessed Eucharist.
The Joy of Being Catholic
The idea that the life of a Catholic, even on the natural level, should be markedly different from the life of, say, an Episcopalian, or a Jew, or a Buddhist, is not so readily apparent as some might assume. The … Continue reading
Making Good Use of Scripture
(This piece is an excerpt from a lecture Brother Francis gave in the 1970s.) The Bible is the book that makes saints.
Imitating Christ’s Humility: Philippians 2
The Challoner edition of the Douay-Rheims Bible gives a good description of Philippians 2 at the head of the chapter: “He recommends them to unity and humility, and to work out their salvation with fear and trembling.” In broad overview, … Continue reading
Saints X and Y
Below is a little talk I gave this morning to our school students (most of whom are little), who are accustomed to hearing a few minutes’ meditation about the saint of the day before each Mass. Since today is a … Continue reading
The Relationship between the Virtues and the Gifts of the Holy Ghost
The gifts of the Holy Ghost resemble the infused virtues in a number of ways. Both are operative habits which have God as their efficient cause and the perfection of man as their final cause. Both reside in the human … Continue reading
On the Necessity of the Sacrament of Penance
Our Lord once said to His disciples, “Many are called, but few are chosen.” These words of our Divine Master ever remain true, because He Who said so is God and Truth itself. It is to each one of us … Continue reading
Peace, a Fruit of the Holy Ghost
I began to write this on the feast of St. John of San Facundo, a Spanish Augustinian Friar of the fifteenth century. He is the patron of the city of Salamanca. Conspicuous for being a peace maker among factions, he … Continue reading
The General Relationship between the Virtues and the Gifts of the Holy Ghost
The gifts of the Holy Ghost resemble the infused virtues in a number of ways. Both are operative habits which have God as their efficient cause and the perfection of man as their final cause.
On the Church and the World: Lessons from the Easter Liturgy and the Russian Prophet
Lessons from Today’s Liturgy. During Easter Week, the traditional liturgy presents us with rich Scripture readings proper to every day of the week. Today, Wednesday of Easter Week, we read the Gospel account from John 21 about the post-Resurrection miraculous … Continue reading
Passiontide Meditation
“He that is of God heareth the words of God.” — a meditation on Passiontide, based on the Gospel and Epistle for Passion Sunday. Passion Sunday. Today is Passion Sunday. The Church gives it this name because the two weeks … Continue reading
Lenten Combat Considerations
For your edification, I offer some thoughts on this week’s Sunday Gospel and Epistle, which focus us on the spiritual combat of the Lenten season, and of the Christian life. These meditations were prepared for Sunday, so they refer to … Continue reading
On the Hatred of ‘the World’
Below is a sublime liturgical reflection from the pen of my favorite spiritual writer, Abbot Prosper Guéranger. It is an excerpt from The Liturgical Year for the Tuesday of Quinquagesima Week, where that profound Benedictine master writes about the hatred we … Continue reading
