I am writing this letter on another anniversary of the events of 9/11. That was a day in which we saw great evil followed by acts of love, faith and charity. It occurred to me this morning how much, in a world of faith, evil can abide. The recent...
To each invocation, the response is: Forgive Your Church, O Lord. For all the ways Your shepherds have failed to care for Your flock… For the innocent lives that were violated, ruined, or scarred… For the warnings and complaints that...
During the Vietnam War, an American soldier was severely wounded, but miraculously recovered, and from his hospital bed he wrote a very moving letter. He said, “From the split second I was hit, I was completely alone. . . . I was hurt real bad; a...
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...
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...
Nun’s Massage Parlor Closed— This was the headline that appeared in 1983 in the St. Paul Pioneer Press after the city’s Vice Squad shut down Sister Rosalind Gefre’s massage center. Newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations...
When I visit a hospital or a nursing home, I often will come upon a room with a warning on the door. It will say, “Infection. All visitors must check with nurses station and then use mask, gloves and gown.” When I did this for a while, I became use...
The Gospel for the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Mt 15: 21-28) contains one of the most memorable verbal duels recorded in the four Gospels, and one of the most important. We need to pick it apart and draw some golden nuggets out of this wonderful...
