March 6, 2011

The 40 Day Challenge: Are You Ready?

This week I’ve been reading Servant of God Archbishop Fulton Sheen’s Love, Marriage and Children, and was struck by how much this man – a celibate who died more than thirty years ago – understood about contemporary married life.  (His profound understanding of the human condition is undoubtedly the reason his nationally syndicated radio and television programs, which aired from 1951-1968, drew more than 30 million people each week.) As we prepare to enter the penitential season of Lent, the forty days of preparation for Easter, many people think about what to “give up” during this time. For some it’s chocolate or alcohol – for others it might be […]
March 2, 2011

The Five Loves of Marriage and Family Life

This week I’ve been reading Love, Marriage and Children by Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen. Although the book was first published in 1954 (I got this copy from the seminary library), the dear man’s words struck me as fresh and insightful. Honestly, the realities of marriage and family life haven’t changed all that much in fifty years. We still have to work at giving ourselves 100% to those we love, and to practice the virtue of self-donation, which is at the heart of every authentic expression of love. Fifty years ago, Archbishop Sheen was one of the most widely recognized religious figures in the media; today […]