Our readings today tell us about how much those who are poor and marginalized have to teach us about faith. Fr. Joseph Dickan, SJ, reflects on how God chooses to teach how to listen and follow him through those who the world might otherwise ignore. Based on the readings for the Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Real Presence: The Ministry of a Sports Chaplain
As he concludes his regency mission at Loyola High School of Detroit, Eddie Wesonga, SJ, reflects on his ministry as a sports chaplain and the ways it invited him into authentic encounter and a deeper relationship with his students.
Inside Jesuit Life at Bellarmine House of Studies
What is life like for a Jesuit during First Studies? Chris Kinkor, SJ, offers an inside view of life for a Jesuit scholastic at Bellarmine House of Studies at Saint Louis University and reflects on the ways God has been at work in this period of his formation.
A Meditation with a Contemporary Our Lady of Sorrows
Using the aesthetics of pop art, Nick Leeper guides a meditation, asking us to gaze at Our Lady of Sorrows with new eyes.
An Overview of Fratelli Tutti
On Sunday, Pope Francis released the third encyclical of his papacy entitled “Fratelli Tutti,” on fraternity and social friendship. An encyclical is one of the highest ranking documents from a Pope. In this lengthy letter, he offers critiques of populism, neoliberalism, and militarized borders. He restates a rejection of the death penalty. He calls on all people to recognize and live out our common fraternity. Read this article for a complete overview.
A Simple Vote? It’s More Complicated Than That.
As I write this post, my absentee ballot is sitting next to me, still blank. There are Catholics who say the choice is simple. There is only one issue that matters. But the stories I heard suggest it is more complicated.
Responding to Bishop Barron: Racism, Not Postmodernism, is the Reason for the Abyss.
Bishop Barron says an abyss has developed between religion and protest movements since the 1960s and sees postmodern philosophy as the cause. However, the divide, which is not new, is more complex than that and its cause is not postmodernism, but racism.
Do Your Research. Discern Your Vote. Stop Condemning Others.
As some Catholic leaders pick sides, the faithful should do their research, keep an open mind, and show the love of Christ in the midst of our divided politics.
Did You Know? Boring Prayer is Good Prayer.
I am far from the only person who has ever been frustrated by prayer in which “nothing happens.” In fact, I hear this quite regularly from people sharing their spiritual lives. We want to experience our prayer as we do almost everything else: productively. We wish to finish a time in prayer feeling that we have accomplished something, learned something, moved forward, or used our time well.
At The Mercy of ICE: Alex García’s Story
Alex Garcia has not left the grounds of Christ Church in Poplar Bluff, Missouri for three years. He is living at the sanctuary parish which provides protection from being deported.