Salt or Bust! A Consideration of the Lord’s Uncompromising Stance in Calling Us the Salt of the Earth

In the Gospel today (Tuesday of the 10th week) the Lord describes metaphorically what a Christian is and what He expects of us. You are the salt of the earth … You are the light of the World … But if salt goes flat it is good for nothing … No one lights a lamp …

Of Mice and Men – Pondering the Strange Loss of Faith in an Age of Science

One of the more perplexing claims of the growing number of agnostics and atheists among us is that there is no evidence of an intelligent creator of the universe. But clearly the created universe manifests intelligibility and order from the farthest reaches of outer space down to our tiny planet and further down into the …

Four Immediate Results of Jesus’ Death on the Cross

Let’s conclude our consideration of certain texts from the Passion Narratives with one that describes the aftermath of Jesus’ death. The Gospel of Matthew recounts four immediate results of Jesus’ death, and while they describe historical events, they also signal deeper spiritual truths. And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he …

A More Awful Thing – Jesus’ Lament on the Culture of Death as He Is on His Way to the Cross

In the Gospel we read on Palm Sunday, Jesus says a rather extraordinary thing as He is on His way to the cross. He addresses it to the women who have gathered to lament Him: Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep instead for yourselves and for your children, for indeed, the days are …

Don’t Believe Everything You Think – A Consideration of Distorted Thinking and the Spiritual Life

In my work as a spiritual director and in deliverance ministry as well as in my own experience of personal growth, it has become very clear to me that there are common patterns of distorted thinking that disrupt spiritual growth and cause distress and disorder. These cognitive distortions lead one to misinterpret or overanalyze the …