One of the great themes of Easter has always been New Creation - the death of our old selves which we leave buried in the tomb and a new beginning powered by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is undeniable that the darkness of...
Leo the Great teaches that he sign of the cross with the oil called chrism, conferred on all Christians in baptism and confirmation, makes all sharers in the priesthood and kingship of Christ, the anointed one....
The story of Doubting Thomas shows us that even apostles live, not by justice, but by Divine Mercy. That's why this story is always the subject of the gospel on Divine Mercy Sunday, the Octave of Easter....
St. Gregory the Great's commentary on the Apostle Thomas and his struggle with doubt. It makes for especially good reading for the Octave of Easter or the Feast of St. Thomas, the Apostle, which since the fourth century has been commemorated on July 3,...
The bread and wine of the Eucharist actually become what they symbolize and transmit what they contain, the body and blood of Christ, for our transformation. The Mass is both sacrifice and meal at the same time....
Gregory the Great here reflects on Jesus words in John 10 that he is the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep....
In Part 1 of Understanding the Mass, we examined how the Mass relates to the Sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. In this, part 2 of the series, we ask in what way the Eucharist can be said to be our sacrifice, the sacrifice...
Justin here describes the way the Sunday Eucharist was celebrated in Rome about 150 AD about 50-60 years after the last New Testament books. It shows that the Eucharist was interpreted in a very realistic way in the early church....
This excerpt from 2nd century Church Father, Irenaeus, contains beautiful imagery of the Holy Spirit as the rainfall of God as well as a fascinating allegorical interpretation of parable of the Good Samaritan to illustrate the role of the various persons of the Holy Trinity-...
This excerpt from Basil the Great's landmark work On the Holy Spirit (AD 360) is a marvelous expression of faith in the Holy Ghost as fully divine, the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. It also describes the works of the Holy Spirit in the...