18th
Jun 2013
How many of us walk by the kiosks where the lottery tickets are sold and just for a second imagine what it would be like to win 50 million? What would we buy? What would we give to family, church, or charity? Personally, I imagine what it would be like not to have to worry about paying the bills, and how settled it would be to have my home paid off. I’d plan elaborate vacations with the extended family and ... (Continue reading)
Scriptural passages are probably among the most frequently quoted—and misunderstood and misrepresented statements in the history of the Bible. Two sides of a religiously-charged debate will use scripture to drive home their point and defeat the other person. Nowhere was that more evident than at a Toronto Catholic District School Board meeting I attended a few days ago. The Board debated a Trustee motion to reject the establishment of Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) clubs in Ontario Catholic schools. GSA clubs are mandated ... (Continue reading)
"I'm heartbroken to announce that last week, we discovered a crushed consecrated Host beneath one of the kneelers," the pastor of a small yet devout Californian parish says. He pauses for a moment before he goes on, his voice choked by just indignation and sadness: "This is God, people. God." Then he drops the bomb. "I'm writing to Pope Francis to do away with the practice of Communion in the hand altogether. I believe most of the abuses and blasphemies ... (Continue reading)
First, a clarification: All moms work, whether they stay at home or go out and earn a paycheque. For this post, I am defining "working mom" as those of us who work outside the home. In the twenty-five years that I have been a mother, I have worked as a full-time and part-time RN. I was also a stay-at-home mom for a few years, homeschooling for three of those years. Currently I am an RN in independent practice and own a ... (Continue reading)
"Can a woman forget her nursing child, or have no compassion for the child of her womb?” (Isaiah 49:15) Can you imagine a woman who is just like any loving mother, except completely sinless? Can you imagine a woman so radiantly humble, so sweetly selfless, so perfectly pious? Is there any way for us to imitate such loveliness, despite our wretched inclination to sin? As the mother of Jesus, the daughter of the Father, and the spouse of the Holy Spirit, ... (Continue reading)
One of the towns that my family frequently stays in is Alliance, Nebraska. It’s a relatively small town: population 8500. The first few times we stayed there we really hated it, but that turned out to be mainly because we were staying on the wrong side of town. Okay, technically you can still see the place we used to stay from the place we now prefer to stay, but those three blocks made a big difference in our perception of ... (Continue reading)
In light of the building collapse in Bangladesh, the media has turned to the ethics of our clothing trades…again. Clothing lines like Joe Fresh (in Canada) and big businesses like Walmart don’t hide the fact that they buy much of their stock from countries that care exactly zero about human life or, rather, from countries that allow (and maybe encourage?) people to work in dangerous conditions that inevitably lead to significant loss of life. It drew my attention to the little hands ... (Continue reading)
I watched the YouTube videos and read the articles of Susan Griffiths' final week of life with a mixture of sadness, discouragement, and anger. Susan Griffiths was the Canadian woman from Winnipeg, Manitoba who committed assisted suicide at the Dignitas Clinic in Switzerland on 25 April 2013. She was in the early stages of Multiple Systems Atrophy, a rare condition of the involuntary nervous system. As the name implies, it attacks all organ systems, thereby affecting everything ... (Continue reading)
“Chastity charms: we hand out the little hearts, but not the key. That way, nobody can open the lock forever, and ladies, that’s what keeps us safe!” - Emma Pillsbury, Glee In the TV show Glee, Emma Pillsbury is a neurotic, dysfunctional virgin who refuses to consummate her marriage. Holly Holiday, on the other hand, is a promiscuous temp who thinks that chastity for teens is like “vegetarianism for lions.” This is what the media has to say about sex. Modern TV ... (Continue reading)
"If God exists, why did He make us all different? Why didn't He make us all one colour, one religion? Then we wouldn't keep fighting each other. There's been wars ever since the world began. Why would God allow that?" These questions were directed to me by an avowed atheist whom I'll call "Jack," an elderly person who sometimes brings up the topic of religion. On this particular day, he also pointed out the hypocrisy of rabbis, priests, ministers—anyone in a ... (Continue reading)
There are so many times in my life when I’ve never felt so blessed! I have a loving ...
When my grandmother moved out of the house she had lived in for 35 years, it took the ...
I love art—particularly paintings. I love the way that paintings have their own language, where so much can ...
In his new book, The I-Choice: Staying Human in a Digital Age, Fr. Denis Lemieux explores the Internet's effects ...
There we were, my husband and I, lounging around the living room, facing each other but not looking ...
How many of us walk by the kiosks where the lottery tickets are sold and ...
Scriptural passages are probably among the most frequently quoted—and misunderstood and misrepresented statements in the ...
"I'm heartbroken to announce that last week, we discovered a crushed consecrated Host beneath one ...
First, a clarification: All moms work, whether they stay at home or go out and ...
"Can a woman forget her nursing child, or have no compassion for the child of ...
One of the towns that my family frequently stays in is Alliance, Nebraska. It’s a ...
In light of the building collapse in Bangladesh, the media has turned to the ethics ...
I watched the YouTube videos and read the articles of Susan Griffiths' final ...
“Chastity charms: we hand out the little hearts, but not the key. That way, nobody ...
"If God exists, why did He make us all different? Why didn't He make us ...
I’m not a big Simpson’s fan, but I do remember one funny episode where Homer’s ...
Late have I loved You, beauty so old and so new; late have I loved ...
Okay, I’m going to do it. You’re probably all Pope-d out as there hasn't been a moment’s ...
I thoroughly enjoy books which give great insight to the inner workings of man's character ...
Like many faithful Catholics, the resignation of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI left me feeling uncertain ...