In June 2017, I had the occasion to meet the eminent Jesuit historian Fr. John Padberg, who died just a few months ago at age 95. I was a Jesuit novice at the time, toward the beginning of my journey in religious life. Knowing Fr. Padberg was such an esteemed Jesuit...
Come Holy Spirit! On Pentecost Sunday we celebrate the descent of the Holy Spirit. Tucker Redding, SJ, reflects on the Spirit’s ability to bring us together and compel us to action. Based on the readings for Sunday, June 5, 2022. Lord, send out your Spirit, and...
One of the most common questions a Jesuit gets asked, especially when he is a younger man, is: “Why?” – “Why do you want to be a Jesuit?” “Why do you want to be a priest?” For the majority of Jesuits those questions are variations of the same point: their desire...
And the crowd goes wild “Well, I’ve never seen anything like this before,” I muttered. After a real slobberknocker that sent a player to the turf and the crowd howling, the athletic director stormed onto the field, stared down the crowd, and began to speak. “This is...
After entering the Jesuits, I had to transform my relationship with the world of art. Art, especially religious art, has been present in my life since I was two years old. Religious art has been my passion since early on: It marks my way of relating to the surrounding...
A few days after Russia invaded Ukraine, Vladimir Putin put his country’s nuclear forces on “special alert”. Since then, a flurry of news articles has followed, all raising that pressing and all-important question: Is there a possibility for actual nuclear war? While...
Peace be with you! We are all in search of peace, but it seems hard to find at times. Matthew Zurcher, SJ, reminds us that Christ offers us lasting peace, a peace beyond what we can find on our own. Based on the readings for Sunday, May 22, 2022. My peace I give to...
This is the twelfth installment of A Deacon’s Diary. In the eleventh installment, Steve’s hopes for a purgative Lent flew by in a whirl of activities. I. Ordination to the priesthood is almost exactly a month away. It seems like yesterday that it was three or six...
Amid the continued barrage of images from the Ruso-Ukrainian conflict, you may have encountered harrowing footage of tattooed Salvadoran prisoners stripped down to their underwear and stacked against each other in jail yards throughout the country. In April, El...
How do you identify a Christian? While there might be many answers to that question, Christopher Smith, SJ, reflects on the one answer that Jesus gives in today’s gospel. Based on the readings for Sunday, May 15, 2022. How will folks know that you’re a...
