Two sisters in New York State, Nancy and Kathi, took an old upholstered chair to a furniture shop to have it refinished. When the upholsterer removed the cushioned seat, he discovered a series of dots like dominoes burned into a wooden support slat;...
Several years ago, walking through the woods behind our Seminary property in late April, as my eyes strained to spot morels, I was startled by the shy yet imposing beauty of tiny plants of yellow violets. Aren’t violet supposed to be blue? Those...
We are reminded of the importance of forgiving others every time we recite the Lord’s Prayer and ask God to “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” But there is another side to forgiveness that is less prominent in...
Recently, at the Maryland State House of Delegates an animation video of a late term abortion was shown. It gruesomely depicted the dismemberment of a preborn baby done with sharp forceps. Most of the viewers were horrified by the protracted cruelty...
In preparing couples for marriage, I enjoy asking them what seems to be a simple question: “So, what is love?” Now for many of us, the word love is among our favorites. On any given day, I would wager that we utter the word many, many times. But do...
“I can never forgive Trump for the things he said about John McCain, Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina, and all the others. Never!” A Catholic friend said this to me early in December, after Trump was elected. She spoke with such finality that I framed my...
The famous psychiatrist Dr. Karl Menninger, in his best-selling book Whatever Became of Sin?, told a story of something that happened in Chicago some years back. A strange and grim-looking man with unkempt long hair and ragged clothes stood on a...
Nothing is known about the life of Zacchaeus following his conversion, but there’s a legend that after his encounter with Christ, every single morning he would get up early and leave his house for about half-an-hour, before returning home for his...
