Lenten fasting works best when accompanied by almsgiving and works of mercy, says Leo the Great, writing around AD 450. This powerful combination brings healing, spiritual renewal, and progress in virtue....
The call of Abraham and the Transfiguration of Jesus are presented to us on the 2nd Sunday of Lent because they teach us about how to approach hardship and suffering with faith and hope....
The Temptation of Jesus in the Desert is the gospel of the first Sunday of Lent. The purple color of Lent symbolizes penance, but also royalty. As we remember how the first Adam was tempted and failed his test, we rejoice that...
Cyril, speaking to new Christians in Jerusalem around AD 360, explains why the Church is called catholic. The word "catholic" comes from the Greek word meaning "whole," "entire," or "all." After explaining the meaning of catholic, Cyril goes on to explain the meaning...
An anonymous account of the last days of St. Cyril, brother of Methodius. The two brothers brought the gospel to the Slavic People in the 9th Century. Their feast is February 14, Valentine's Day....
Podcast excerpted from radio interview in which Dr. Italy offers some reflections on the apparitions of Mary to lowly shepherd girls in Lourdes in 1858. Most Catholics have heard about Bernadette and how Our Lady appeared to her near the remote town of Lourdes in Southern...
This 2004 instruction from the Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments is entitled Redemptionis Sacramentum. It addresses certain matters to be observed or to be avoided regarding the Mass, otherwise known as the most holy Eucharist, the sacrament of our...
You are the salt of the earth and the light of the world, proclaims Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. This seems to indicate that there is an essential role for passion, excitement and fire in the Christian life....
Pick up your mat and Go Home -What the healing of the paralytic as recounted in the Gospel of Mark teaches us about the faith of the community and even infant baptism....
Who precisely are the Fathers of the Church and why do they matter? And if they are so important, what’s the best way to get started learning about them?...