Blog of the Archdiocese of Washington
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 …
Continue reading “Four Immediate Results of Jesus’ Death on 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 …
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 …
In a recent post (Is There a Way Back to Undeniable Reality and Universally Binding Norms?) I discussed how we today tend to “live in our heads” a lot more so than did the people living in biblical times and even those who lived up to and including the High Middle Ages and the Scholastic …
In yesterday’s post I discussed the overall disconnect from reality effected by nominalism and its successor movements (e.g., Cartesian, Kantian, nihilist). Increasingly we live in our heads and no longer view reality itself as a reliable indicator of what is; we claim a kind of right to determine our own individual notion of reality. This …
Continue reading “Still There! A Meditation on the Universal Inclination to “the Good””
Today’s Gospel is about a man who had two sons, both of whom forsook him and refused to relive in relationship with him. Although the sons seem to have very different personalities (one outwardly rebellious, the other outwardly obedient) they actually have similar internal struggles. In effect, neither one of them really wants a relationship …
Continue reading “There Was a Man Who Had Two Sons – A Homily for the 4th Sunday of Lent”
There was a discussion a few years ago on my Facebook page about Church music. My parish, Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian in Washington, D.C., was featured on EWTN’s nightly news (see video below); the discussion centered on that report. Among the many forms of music we use here at my parish, gospel music is predominant at …
Continue reading “What is Sacred Music? It’s a Bit More Complex than You May Think”
One of the strong traditions of Scripture is of the great reversal that will one day come for many. I have been sobered by it when I consider how blessed I have been in this life; I have been consoled by it when I struggle to understand why some people seem to suffer so much …