The TJP archives

Smartphone notifications often make us feel like marionettes, like we’re attached to a thousand strings pulling us all at once. New technology promises to make our lives distraction-free. But what would Jesus let distract him?

In his first public miracle, Jesus quietly provides for the needs of the hosts at the wedding at Cana. Christopher Smith, SJ, reflects on the ways that Jesus similarly provides for us, sometimes when we aren’t even aware of it.

Speaking with an old friend, Deacon Steve explores one of the gifts of priesthood: accompanying people to the last.

Only three days earlier I had professed my first vows in Los Angeles; now I was being asked to make yet another solemn profession: I would seek no ransom for my release in the event of my kidnapping.

One Jesuit grapples with the question, “Who is Mary?” when he’s confronted about the Catholic devotion to our Blessed Mother. That leads him to realize that Mary, with her son Jesus, is the one helping him discover the family he has found in his prison ministry.

In his first article, An explores how painting a classmate’s photo gave him a glimpse of how God might create beauty.

The Baptism of Jesus Christ was pretty spectacular. A dove descended from Heaven and the voice of God could be heard. Fr. Danny Gustafson, SJ, reflects on the ways that God is similarly present at every baptism.

It’s hard to know the purpose of something without knowing the intention of its creator. Our latest Jesuit 101 explainer is a guide to St. Ignatius’ First Principle and Foundation, his idea of God’s intention in creating us.

On the traditional feast of the Epiphany, Shane contemplates what that day might have looked like in his poem.

In quarantine, if I wanted something, I could not simply open a door, drawer, or lid to get it. I had to ask, kind of like a child. If I wanted something different, I had to ask, like prayer.