Commentary Walking around my neighborhood this fall, I saw many skeletons. Bones seemed to protrude from every lawn. One evening, taking a walk in the encroaching darkness, a skeleton I hadn’t spotted noticed me. It was an action-activated Halloween display. My passing by caused the 7-foot-tall skeleton to emit a gruesome laugh. I literally jumped […]
Effie Caldarola: Finding God in silent moments
Commentary We live in a noisy world. I’m not just talking about rush-hour traffic or the planes that make an approach to the Philadelphia airport far above my head at night. I’m talking about the noises that occupy our minds due to our cellphone addictions, social media impact, the endless news cycle and mean-spirited online […]
Effie Caldarola: Identifying and walking with our ‘special saints’
Commentary There’s a well-known story about the time a journalist asked St. John XXIII an innocent question. “How many people work at the Vatican?” queried the reporter. “About half of them,” replied the pontiff with a smile. Every time I read that spontaneous response, I laugh anew. I was rereading Jesuit Father James Martin’s book, […]
Effie Caldarola: We must embrace laughter, joy
Commentary Is laughter good medicine? Maybe, but it’s rare that we hear about the laughter of a saint. In our current historical moment, I think we need a saint’s laughter. In July, we celebrated 31 days of St. Ignatius of Loyola, leading up to the anniversary of his death July 31, 1556. People who love […]
Effie Caldarola: Kidnapped African priest was beloved in Alaskan diocese
Commentary Like many Americans, I remember the terrorist group Boko Haram because of its kidnapping of 276 Nigerian school girls in 2014. The world recoiled in horror, but eventually the news cycle moved on. So I was shocked anew when friends in Fairbanks, Alaska, reported early in June that a priest friend had been kidnapped […]
Effie Caldarola: Jesus is present in our love for others
Commentary Four-year-old Alice is brushing her teeth before bed. Mom and Dad went out for the night, and big sister is at a friend’s house. So, my husband and I came for pizza, books and play with Alice. She’s an easy kid to be with. As she spits her toothpaste into the sink, she looks […]
Effie Caldarola: Caring for creation cannot be tossed aside
Commentary Glancing out my window on a dusky evening, I’m startled to see a huge bird perching on my neighbor’s garage, just a few yards away. What at first appears to be a prehistoric avian is in fact the neighborhood turkey. I didn’t know turkeys could fly that high. Why do we have a neighborhood […]
Effie Caldarola: A Christian Brother’s road to sainthood
Commentary He was an energetic farm boy from rural Wisconsin, walking daily to a one-room country schoolhouse where a single teacher taught all eight grades. Later, when James Miller taught high school as a De La Salle Christian Brother, he earned the nickname “Brother Fix-It” for the practical skills he brought from the farm and […]
Effie Caldarola: Love inspires hope in darkest moments
Commentary It was a Christmas Eve long ago. We lived in Alaska, and the late afternoon sky was dark. I was getting dinner and thinking of the holiday “to-dos” still undone. My 5-year-old son was in the kitchen, and I asked him, “Mike, what are you most hoping Santa brings tomorrow?” I smugly thought I’d […]
Effie Caldarola: We must feel unrest to foment change
Commentary My first job out of college was teaching at a Catholic school in a small town. I was at that point in life — barely 22 — when I was questioning my faith. But something about the music and joy of the weekly Masses in the school gym called to me. And the young […]
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