In the special 8 days following Easter, known as the Octave, we get one gospel reading after another about the resurrection. It’s easy to grow accustomed to these readings if you’ve heard them year after year, but they really are quite varied, incredible, and...
Lent is easier than Easter. The struggle of life, a gnawing sense of our own inadequacy, the patience of everyday life–these Lenten themes are not a stretch for the mind. Incompleteness and wandering in the wilderness are the very taste of the ordinary. Easter,...
The Resurrection doesn’t erase our pain and confusion, but it does give us new hope. Christopher Smith, SJ, reflects on Easter Sunday and the Resurrection. Based on the readings for Easter Sunday, April 17, 2022. There’s an old southern saying: “For every cross...
Podcast Episode: In the Fourth Week of the Spiritual Exercises, we focus on the risen Christ. He has passed through the suffering of the cross and entered into his glory. Desiring that others share his joy, he goes about consoling all who were deeply shaken by his...
“But man does not drive to be free for himself and content with himself.”1 According to Jürgen Multmann in The Crucified God, Psalm 18, verse 36 is not often understood. He says it should read,“You show me that you are great by your humiliation of yourself” because,...
Life without God feels cold. The times I have felt the most numb were the ones when I chose to be distant from the divine; running away from the source of warmth. On Good Friday, the invitation is to be close to Jesus during his Passion, a time of deep suffering and...
Podcast Episode: Jesus laid down his life on the cross to save us from sin and death. We may experience different reactions to this greatest act of love. In this Third Week talk, David reflects on several of them. Given the suffering the world has seen these past few...
The following reflection is part of our “Jesuit 101” series, celebrating the Ignatian Year. This piece helps us to better understand the concept of “magis” which is used often in the context of Jesuit institutions and Ignatian Spirituality. To learn more, check out...
Teresa of Avila, saint, mystic, reformer of the Carmelite order, founder of the Discalced Carmelites and . . . angry with God. That last one doesn’t seem to fit with the others. But there is a story I’ve heard of St. Teresa. One day, while riding her horse, she fell...
On Palm Sunday, Jesus triumphantly enters Jerusalem. By the end of the week, he will be betrayed and crucified. Fr. Danny Gustafson, SJ, reflects on the many contrasts of Holy Week and the beauty to be found. Based on the readings for Sunday, April 10, 2022. From...
