Last month, Pope Francis released an Apostolic Exhortation entitled “Gaudete et exsultate.” A little different from a papal encyclical—a formal document addressing a universal church teaching—an apostolic exhortation presents a reflective discourse on an important topic. The topic of this letter is On the Call to Holiness in Today’s World. The title translates: “Rejoice and […]
One aspect of classical education in a religious school that I like most is the emphasis that’s put on doing what we do in a better manner, on a higher level, or in a more integrated way, because we know Jesus: both the man of history and the God of faith. The learning community—which includes […]
Just as there are stages of development for nearly every aspect of living: physical, moral, mental, psychological…so are there stages for spiritual development. Various experts present their variations. Basic to all is the classic three-level states of spiritual life: purgative, illuminative, and unitive. Today, James Fowler’s six stages of spiritual development are a popular reference […]
From Mount Sinai, Moses presented The Ten Commandments to God’s chosen people. Such commandments, or legal formulations, were common to most nations or tribes at that time in history. But what made Israel unique is that it believed these laws originated with God, not humans—and that made them more precious than gold. The first three […]
March Madness hits a high point in the middle of the month as conference basketball champions cut down the nets and punch their ticket to the annual NCAA Tournament. It’s called The Big Dance because no less than sixty-five teams are invited to the court and among them is always a Cinderella underdog that rises […]
Though rare that Valentine’s Day and Ash Wednesday are the same, in this twenty-four hour period we are offered a time for lovers and given a mark for the love of God. It’s a day of hearts with a mark of ashes: a perfect time for us to locate where we have progressed on the […]
Ring the bells that still can ring Forget your perfect offering There is a crack in everything That’s how the light gets in Those lyrics from Leonard Cohen’s “Anthem” remind us that we are all flawed. The cracked Liberty Bell in Philadelphia is a lasting symbol for our nation that we, too, […]
