When I was a young priest, I served as Vocation Director for my diocese. During that time, I was struck by the fact that my brother priests held varying ecclesial views that aligned us with, or separated us from, each other and, subsequently, made vocation work more challenging. I wrote the following poem at that […]
Catholics are not angry at the Catholic Church that was established by Jesus Christ. They are angry at the corporate bureaucratic institutional Catholic Church that keeps redirecting it. Perhaps we can transform our anger by joining Pope Francis who is leading us to restore the beauty of the Church in Christ, even when it’s not […]
Potholes can do a lot of damage to cars: flat tires, bent rims, steering misalignment, problems to suspension systems, shocks, struts, undercarriages—even engines. When dodging potholes in the daily commute, we must also dodge other cars that are dodging other potholes in the same vicinity. More than an annoyance, the holes in the road are […]
Among the Catholic Church’s faults—I admit we’ve got a boatload of them—is that we have a problem keeping important things important and unimportant things unimportant. This was Jesus’ constant challenge to church leaders in His time, too. The fact that we haven’t gotten much better at it 2,000 years later brings sadness, disgust, and embarrassment […]
Catholic School education in the northland is accessible and affordable. At Saint Charles Borromeo Academy, it is also classical and customized. For the past five months, pastors from the twelve Kansas City Northland Catholic parishes in Platte and Clay Counties have been meeting to discuss the important task we bear of educating children in the […]
Friends of mine are parents to five teenagers. When they were five infants, toddlers, and tykes, they were cute, fun, and adorable—also a handful. These parents, who have a clear and unified sense of God and faith, found it easy and enjoyable to teach their little kids about the Lord, right versus wrong, and making […]
On the Saturday before Lent, March 2, there will be a half-day retreat at Rockhurst High School for women. If you are somebody’s mother, daughter, sister, or wife, irrespective of religious background, you are invited to join in. I will team up with Rockhurst president, David Laughlin, to share presenter duties. The doors will open […]
