Patron of Haiti, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, shows both hope and concern as comforts her son and looks out toward all of us; the icon is comforting and complicated. The 12,000 migrants camped in Del Rio, Texas, many of whom are Haitians, know too well the complicated mix of hope and worry. The Biden [...]
Long before September 11th commemorations, September has evoked a host of memories. Fall foliage marks the passage of time and the omnipresent ads for pencils and lunchboxes remind us of our best and worst experiences of our early learning. A “do-over” opportunity for students and teachers. the new school year provides a model for continuing [...]
After finding Jesus in the temple, Mary is said to have pondered all things in her heart. How much we have to ponder in our hearts as we anticipate the twentieth anniversary of 9/11: the memories of the persons who died that day and of those who over the years have died of the wide-range [...]
How often during the war in Afghanistan as in previous wars part of our stated goal was to win minds and hearts of the people; therefore, we invested in humanitarian and development projects. US and allied forces also won trust and friendship of civilians who risked their personal safety to support our efforts. Now, as [...]
One of the most poignant portrayals of our Blessed Mother is that of the Pieta, the sorrowful mother holding the body of Christ. Mary continues to hold us, who are the body of Christ, in her arms. On the feast of the Assumption of Mary, we looked to Mary as a reminder of Christ’s words [...]
In times of trouble, we often appeal to Mary as Mother of Perpetual Help. She is our steady hope, joining us in our prayers, when hope is hard to come by. As we move through a summer that we had hoped would mark our country’s “return to normal,” after our long pandemic isolation, we are [...]
Mary’s titles, Mother of the Living and the New Eve remind us of Christ's mission to make all things new. Last week's news brought us graphic images of how much our earth needs renewal, beginning with the massive destruction of floods in Germany and in China. Closer to home, Sunday's news told of nearly 300 [...]
Last week Judge Andrew Hanen ruled that the DACA. Created in 2012, DACA granted some undocumented immigrants who had been brought to the United States temporary protection from deportation and legal permission to seek employment and higher education. As noted previously in this blog, a large percentage of our essential workers in health care, education [...]
Through Mary, we have been birthed into the freedom that is Christ’s gift. Last week as we celebrated Independence Day, we experienced national concerns similar to those identified by Frederick Douglass, the famed abolitionist and escaped slave when on July 5, 1852, he spoke to the Ladies Anti-Slavery Society of Rochester, N.Y of what July [...]
Like Mary, we are called to consider our personal, national and even global experiences in light of God's call to loving service. The first anniversary of George Floyd's death, Memorial Day, and the centenary of the Tulsa Race Massacre, give us ample cause for prayer and reflection A number of states have instituted changes in [...]
