Blog of the Archdiocese of Washington
In modern times, we tend to link our notions of happiness and inner well-being to external circumstances and happenstance. We think that happiness will be found when the things of this world are arranged in the way we like. If we can just accumulate enough money and creature comforts, we think we’ll be happy and …
Continue reading “Five Steps to Better Mental Health – A Homily for the Third Sunday of Advent”
As we approach the Christmas feasts, it is good for us to ponder aspects of the Incarnation. In this post, I would like to consider what St. Thomas Aquinas teaches about its fittingness. God was not radically “required” to do everything as He did. We do well to ponder why the manner of the Lord’s …
Continue reading “Four Reasons That the Incarnation was Fitting, According to St. Thomas Aquinas”
As I walk or drive through my Capitol Hill neighborhood here in Washington, D.C., I pass by more than twenty churches (all of them Protestant) that have been closed in the past decade. Many of them are grand and prominent buildings. (Click here to see four of them.) Most of the them have been converted …
Continue reading “A Shocking Loss of Faith: Reflecting on the Closing of So Many Churches”
In the first reading for Tuesday of the first week of Advent is expressed the implicit longing of all creation for healing. Isaiah tells us of the healing that will one day come to creation when prey lie down in peace with their predators: The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie …
Continue reading “Creation, Too, “Longs” for the Healing That Christ Will Bring”
In the Liturgy of the Hours this week, we read a remarkable attributed to St. Macarius, a bishop of the early Church. I marvel at its vivid imagery, and yet at the same time, questions arise in my mind as to the general application of the text. In effect, the text states that if the …
Continue reading “On the Loss of Faith as a Cause of Our Current Crisis”
I have spent quite a bit of time at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception here in Washington, due to ordinations and other special occasions. As I walk up the main aisle I never fail to be moved by the scene above the apse of Christ in majesty. (See one of my photos to the right.) …
There is an old saying, “Stop telling God how big your storm is and start telling the storm how big your God is.” In other words, we often need to shift our focus, building up our trust and confidence. Because we are so wired for fear, we tend to overestimate the power and shrewdness of …
Continue reading “A Word of Encouragement from Elisha the Prophet”
The following is taken from a homily I preached this past weekend for the Archdiocese of Washington’s annual White Mass, celebrating the gifts of persons with disabilities/special needs and the deaf community. You can view the video of the homily here at the Archdiocese’s YouTube page. I would like to speak to you today about …