A Lectionary-based resource for homilists and the lay faithful
This is the last of seven little reflections on the Gifts of the Holy Spirit. Etymologically, to understand means to stand-under, but the older meaning of under is in the midst of. When you understand something, you are standing within it. You are intellectually grasping what is around you. You […] Read more »
The word wisdom is one we may use casually without really thinking about what it means. If we reflect on how we use it, the word wisdom relates to truth. It has to do with seeing the truth about something. The truth about that something might have many dimensions. In […] Read more »
There is a famous (or infamous) meme that runs, “That’s what I do. I drink and I know things.” In reality, to be true, we should change this saying to “That’s what we do. We think and we know things!” Ordinary knowledge is when a person assimilates something outside one’s […] Read more »
As a natural virtue, counsel is the good intellectual habit of seeking advice. The Latin word consilium means deliberation or advice. A person may take counsel in himself by thinking things through. One can also get good advice outside of oneself. This is why we call a lawyer a counsellor. As […] Read more »
Since the order in which I am presenting the gifts of the Holy Spirit is the order which I find easier to understand (under the assumption that others have the same difficulties that I do), the next gift I will try to explain is the gift of fortitude. Note that […] Read more »
One of the easier gifts of the Holy Spirit to understand, I think, is the last listed, the gift of fear. Fear of God is one of the gifts that pertain to a person’s will. With our human will, assisted by God’s grace, we have the freedom to choose good […] Read more »
The Catechism of the Catholic Church (1830-1831) says that the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit “sustain” a Christian’s “moral life.” Moral life has to do with the good or evil acts that form the character and eternal destiny of a person. These seven gifts of the Holy Spirit—that is, […] Read more »
To access the Doctrinal Homily Outline for Pentecost Sunday, click here then scroll down. Over the next few weeks I’ll be posting short reflections on Christ and one of his Beatitudes. The Beatitudes and Christ Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus Christ […] Read more »
A brief biography of St. Josemaria Escriva, the founder of Opus Dei. Read more »
Gift of Self Every person’s most fundamental vocation, moral responsibility, and source of fulfillment is authentic self-giving. I think this claim can be discovered by reason and experience. I also believe it permeates Sacred Scriptures and the life of the Church. It has been beautifully articulated in Vatican II’s Gaudium […] Read more »
It is not possible to express completely what heaven is like. As St. Paul wrote, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Cor 2:9). However, I think there are two goods we will […] Read more »
This post has two titles, one concrete but loose and the other abstract but very precise. They are: “I got distracted by the lousy music and missed a treasure” or “External and Internal Negative and Positive Values in the Mass and in Our Participation in It.” Examples of external negative […] Read more »
I was confused for a long time by statements I read about the condition of Adam and Eve before the fall and our condition afterwards. Our first parents were in a state of holiness and justice before the Original Sin and they lost these. Consequently we are born without them. […] Read more »
The Last Supper took place during a Passover meal. Recall that the original Passover meal centered on an unblemished lamb whose blood was shed to save Israel from death during the Passover of the Angel that night. Each year, on God’s instructions, the Jews observed a Passover meal in memory […] Read more »
Two of the most decisive moments in salvation history involve an angel and a woman. The first is the moment of silence after the demonic Serpent spoke to Eve about the forbidden fruit but before her decision to eat it (Gn 3:4-6). Eve’s decision would affect every human being who […] Read more »