Last week, Lisa Gomes and I attended the annual Region XI Youth and Young Adult Ministry Meeting in Orange, Calif. During our second day of meetings, we had a three-hour mini-retreat with Dr. Kathleen Schinhofen. She spoke of many things, but the idea of “planning out of reality” really struck me. We can get caught […]

I was asking God what I should write about and I was drawn to the “Concise Dictionary of Theology.” I found the entry “Lumen Gloria” (Light of Glory), which refers to the opening of our “eyes” to the beatific vision, God in all of his splendor “face to face.” St. Aquinas defined the beatific vision […]

Toward the end of his World Youth Day homily in Rio de Janeiro, Pope Francis said, “the life of Jesus is a life for others. It is a life of service.” He then quoted St. Paul, “I have made himself a slave to all, that I might win the more” (1Cor 9:19) to show us, […]

“Go and make disciples of all nations” was the theme of this year’s World Youth Day. It is from Jesus’ commissioning of the Eleven (no Judas at this point) in Matthew 28:19. Jesus continues, “baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe […]

It is good to be back from World Youth Day! There is so much to share from my experience in Rio de Janeiro, so I will use the next couple of columns to share some of the experience with you here. In his homily for the World Youth Day Mass, Pope Francis offered us three […]

I am reading “Rebuilt” by Father Michael White and Tom Corcoran. The book tells of how their parish was “rebuilt” from being a self-serving community into a place of growth and discipleship. It focuses on changing the consumerist culture. In chapter 5, the authors describe the parish when they arrived. “It was clear the purpose […]

The more I learn about our Catholic faith, and the devotions of the people, I come to realize that God’s view of perfection weighs heavily on diversity and that ALL things point to God. In Psalm 148, the psalmist begins by inviting all beings to praise God! Through all of heaven and all of earth, […]

Who remembers the Hawaiian Tel commercial featuring the song, “Far Too Wide”? Anyone who has spent time living on the Mainland can relate to the young man in the commercial making a “long distance” call home as the lyrics are sung, “I wish that there were some way to walk across the sea.” Every year, […]

Last week, I attended the National Diocesan Directors’ Institute in Washington, D.C. It was my first time there, and it was great to see the national monuments standing as reminders of why and what we stand for. I came to realize that in the same way these monuments are statements of our national history, mission […]

Every young adult wants to learn about the traditions of the church, even if they don’t say so. For so long (spiritually) I felt like that kid nagging his parents again and again, “But why?” I had many questions about what the church teaches and even more questions about what she does. Many questions were […]