REVEREND MR. JOSEPH HULWAY is a permanent deacon of the Archdiocese of Detroit. Dr. Hulway is a retired engineer, published author, and has been married to his wife, Jenni, for 43 years. They have four children, nine grandchildren, and more on the way. He is assigned to Ss. Cyril & Methodius Slovak Catholic Church in Sterling Heights, Michigan.
Ephphatha!—Be opened! Be open; have eyes to see and ears to hear. We hear this theme often in the gospels. Being open to the Word of God is very important, but it is only the first step; we must share the knowledge we obtain with others. We hear and...
On the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, we pause and reflect. For on the surface, it sounds a little bit like an ironic name for a feast. The cross was an instrument of torture, of public humiliation and shame, and of death. These are...
We are required to bury the dead. What about when someone is cremated? Is it okay to have the ashes in an urn in your house? What about the ash bracelets and lockets that funeral homes now offer? Canon Law states: “The Church earnestly recommends...
My children and grandchildren are growing up in a society which is much different than the one that existed in my youth. When I was young, there was consistency in the message I heard in church, the one I heard from society, and the one expressed by...
Mark 6:3 states: “Is He not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” Did Jesus have brothers and sisters? This is a common question and one often used by non...
For many of us, going to church is like going to a sanctuary or a refuge—a place to escape from the craziness of the world for an hour. But at the end of Mass we are sent back out on a mission. As a deacon, I will proclaim: “Go forth, the Mass is...
When I learned the Ten Commandments back in grade school, I was taught the 4th Commandment as simply: “Honor thy father and thy mother.” But on Mt. Sinai when God gave Moses the Commandments, He said: “Honor your father and your mother, that you may...
We often like to lump people into opposite groups: Democrats or Republicans; liberals or conservatives; in the stock market, we might look for bears or bulls; and in college football, maybe Michigan or Michigan State fans. Sometimes we hear the same...
