I was on YouTube a while back and found the video (shown below) by “Cari,” who shares with unflinching courage the story of how she made an adoption plan for her daughter. In another video, she gives us a bit more background of herself — an account of abuse and neglect that is as painful to read as it must have been to make. Although she is still clearly finding her way out of the darkness of the past, I couldn’t help but admire her desire to find a more hope-filled future for her child. Have a look … you’ll never forget it. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-q3enXZFqko&rel=1]

From today’s first reading, from the book of Wisdom … Before the LORD the whole universe is as a grain from a balanceor a drop of morning dew come down upon the earth.But you have mercy on all, because you can do all things;and you overlook people’s sins that they may repent. … Have you ever stopped to think about how many difficult people you encounter in the span of a single week? The self-righteous, the proud, the self-involved, the unbelievably obtuse? Have you ever stopped to consider how much of your mental and emotional energy is spent trying to change, exhort, or educate people […]

Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaimTill all the world adores His sacred Name!Led on their way by this triumphant sign,The hosts of God in conquering ranks combine. Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaimTill all the world adores His sacred Name!Each newborn servant of the CrucifiedBears on the brow the seal of Him Who died. George Kitchin and Michael Newbolt (1916) In today’s first reading, we find Moses leading the Chosen People in war against the soldiers of Amalek. He sends Joshua ahead with the troops, while he and his two trusted aides — his brother Aaron and brother-in-law, Hur […]

“I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;and greet no one along the way.Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household.’ If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him;but if not, it will return to you….” From today’s Gospel reading: Luke 10:1-9 In both readings today, we are reminded that those who teach the faith will experience resistance … and that this resistance may come from an unexpected corner: from those who already profess belief. In the first reading (from 2 Timothy 4:10-16), we read that “Alexander the coppersmith” resisted […]

“Oh, what a pretty little girl! Won’t you come here and sit on my lap, and visit with me?” With effort, my grandmother eagerly reached out to Sarah, who exclaimed over the old woman’s rose-colored fingertips. Soon the two of them were chatting like old friends. Sarah enthralled her great-grandmother with stories from preschool, and the unintended joke that had made me laugh just a few days before: “One mouse, many mice;One house, many … cats!” For the past several years, my paternal grandmother has been living in a senior residence in eastern Ohio, down the street from my Aunt Susan. During that time Grandma […]

Jen at “Et tu?” has started a group writing project, asking for people to submit a post on the following topic: “What are three things your parents did right?” Here are mine, in no particular order: 1. Listen to God when He asks you to do something. The summer before I went to teach ESL in Senegal, West Africa, I overheard my father defending my decision to a relative who could not believe that my parents would let me “waste” my life that way. I’ll never forget his response: “Well, we’ve spent our whole life teaching her obedience. We can hardly blame her for taking […]

Sarah was a little over two years old when we took her to the baptism of her cousin, whose family is Lutheran. We arrived late, and managed to find two seats in the back by crawling over the laps of two pinch-lipped elderly matrons, who clearly disapproved of our being there at all. The sermon that day went a little long, and Sarah quickly grew bored. We passed her back and forth for a few minutes, feeding her Cheerios and turning pages of board-books. One of them contained a large picture of Jesus, and when we reached that page, Sarah found her voice. “Ama-sing gwace, […]

Today as I was reading the latest Catholic Carnival, I clicked on A Catholic Mom in Hawaii:Helping the Holy Souls in Purgatory. This blog is a labor of love on behalf of all souls in purgatory, reminding us to keep these people in our intentions, as part of our family in Christ. As a convert to Catholicism, purgatory is a relatively new concept to me … but frankly, one that I never had much trouble with. It made perfect sense to me, that some Christians need a bit of a “spit and polish,” spiritually speaking, before approaching the Throne of Grace (like the man who […]