The popularity of genealogy and ever-new ways to search for family origins has brought to mind the importance of family. Ever since God told our first parents (as we read in Genesis 35:11)...
The last days in class before Christmas can be hectic. Use this prayer service to spend some quiet time with your students. Create a peaceful atmosphere by turning down the lights the classroom...
Laurie was confused when she spent the night at Eden’s house. Before Eden went to bed, she prayed a Hail Mary for her sick grandmother and for her brother who is in the army. Laurie said...
5 Ways to Jump-Start Your Faith This Advent Is your faith feeling a bit . . . stale? Has it been awhile since you’ve connected with God? Consider a jumpstart! Be intentional about paying...
Have you ever been teaching, and you look out to see a room full of children just staring back at you with glazed eyes? Maybe you’ve experienced sessions where children start twitching,...
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux (1873–1897) Feast day: October 1 In every teen’s life, there are big decisions to be made. This is true in a saint’s life as...
We’ve all heard them—the bloopers or malaprops young children come up with as they articulate memorized prayer. The child who prays, “May the souls of the faithful departed rest in pieces”...
Opening Prayer On September 15th each year, the Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, a day for prayer and reflection on the distinct sorrows that the Blessed Virgin Mary...
On the surface, Pope Francis’s Laudato si’ does not look like a call for an ecological virtue ethics.¹ Large-scale social change seems to be the main point. In two hundred and forty-six...
While many are familiar with the seasons of the Church such as Lent and Advent, not many are aware of the Season of Creation. This season begins on September 1, the World Day of Prayer for...
As we approach the end of the school year and faith formation programs (and a remarkable year at that!), it is helpful to pause and reflect on the importance of your role and presence in...
By Sophie Vodvarka (Editor’s note: This guest blog post appeared originally Nov. 7, 2018, on the blog Sick Pilgrim on Patheos, a website devoted to global dialogue about religion and spirituality,...
Google “most beautiful places of worship” and you’ll get some stunning examples of architecture, from churches to temples to mosques. But what makes a place of worship “beautiful”? And what...
Recently, I relistened to a series of CDs by the poet David Whyte. Titled Clear Mind Wild Heart: Finding Courage & Clarity Through Poetry, the audiobook has become something of a spiritual...
“Why are megachurches and formerly iconoclastic mainline denominations looking more like Catholic parishes in terms of liturgy and practices even as some Catholics are, late to the party...
What’s the future of religion in America? Award-winning journalist Ray Suarez explored that question in an address to the Interfaith Action of Greater St. Paul Annual Assembly on May 30....
Not all young people are leaving the Catholic Church. Nor are those who stay uniformly conservative, traditionalist, or doctrinally dogmatic. Those realities make few headlines, pushed aside...
Religious affiliation is not to blame for anti-Muslim attitudes in the United States. Islamophobia rather is most characteristic of those who do not have personal relationships with Muslims,...
By D. Dale WalkerPart 1 of 2 How can churches engage young people meaningfully, keeping them active and growing in faith? Helpful ways of answering this question exist outside of churches...
By D. Dale WalkerPart 2 of 2 One of the defining characteristics of the American church is its entrepreneurial spirit. Innovations like Methodism and Mormonism took deep root in this country,...
I had not heard of Rachel Held Evans until she died on May 4. My wife noticed a write-up about her online and pointed it out to me. “An influential progressive Christian writer and speaker...
Music throughout history has provided people a means to gather, talk, worship, pray, celebrate, dance, sing, meditate. Music is both communal and profoundly personal, providing comfort,...
(Note: Saint Mary’s Press Research spoke with Sara, a young Muslim woman, about her experience growing up and today as a Muslim woman in the United States. Her experiences and insights offer...
Spiritual direction is essentially companioning someone in his or her spiritual life. Other ways of describing spiritual direction include holy listening, spiritual friendship, sacred journeying.”...
A number of blog posts in this space have emphasized the importance of listening and being heard. Not only do those in the midst of religious and spiritual questioning need gracious places...
Note: Christiana Rice, coauthor with Michael Frost of To Alter Your World: Partnering with God to Rebirth Our Communities (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2017), participated in a...
By Andrea D. Chavez-Kopp If you live in or visit any major city, you will find the new phenomenon of motorized scooters zipping along the streets. Walking the sidewalks, you may see people...
Seeking to identify “points of hopefulness,” archdiocesan leaders met at the New York Catholic Center in Manhattan for a gathering called “Conversation About Young Catholics Leaving the...
