• When I was a kid (and even sometimes as a young adult), I thought Mass was kind of boring. Boy, was I wrong! Turns out I just didn’t have anybody explain what was really going on.  The deeper I dive, the more fascinating Mass becomes. As a layperson, sometimes it feels like we are spectators, […]

  • “He must increase, but I must decrease.” –St. John the Baptist

  • Sometimes the Saints discourage me. It’s not like they’re not doing it on purpose. It’s just that the more I learn about people like St. Francis and St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Teresa of Calcutta, the more I see how far I have to go in my own quest to join their ranks. But then […]

  • Angel of God, my guardian dear,To whom God’s love commits me here,Ever this day, be at my side,To light, to guard, to rule, and guide.Amen

  • As a cradle Catholic, I have never not believed in God.  But I haven’t always taken my faith seriously, and often take for granted the richness and beauty of the Catholic Church. This is one reason I love converts so much, especially former Protestants. Seeing the Church through their eyes is incredibly uplifting. I am […]

  • St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan, and all the evil spirits, who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of […]

  • How do we make sense of the hateful violence, terror, and chaos we observe all around us? Perhaps reflecting a bit upon fairy tales will help.  Star Wars and Harry Potter and The Lord of The Rings are the fairy tales of our age. They resonate with young and old alike, but why?  Simple. It’s […]

  • “At the Cross her station keeping,stood the mournful Mother weeping,close to her Son to the last. Through her heart, His sorrow sharing,all His bitter anguish bearing,now at length the sword has passed. O how sad and sore distressedwas that Mother, highly blest,of the sole-begotten One. Christ above in torment hangs,she beneath beholds the pangsof her […]

  • I have a torn labrum. A few months ago, I didn’t know what a labrum was. I don’t even know how I tore it. I like to imagine it’s an old injury from my glory days on the varsity baseball team, but it’s probably the pedestrian result of an almost fifty-year-old guy having done something […]

  • Prayer Before the Crucifix Behold, O kind and gentle Jesus, I kneel before you and pray that you would impress upon my heart the virtues of faith, hope and charity, with true repentance for my sins and a firm purpose of amendment. At the same time, with sorrow, I meditate on your five precious wounds, […]