Written On Our Hearts

We are living in unprecedented and uncertain times. The entire world has been affected by a global pandemic, it has reached nearly every corner of the earth and affected nearly every person on the planet in some way. If you or a loved one has not contracted the disease, you are probably suffering in some other way from the fallout of schools, businesses, and all forms of public entertainment being shuttered. As a human family, more especially as Americans, this is the first time we have experienced the rapid spread of illness, death, job loss, and freedoms being restricted in our lifetime. As people of faith, it is only natural for us to turn to the Church in difficult times. Unfortunately, in this time many of us are finding that no matter how hard we pull and push on the doors of our Church they too are closed. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying the Church has been absent or silent during these times. Many priests and bishops have become creative offering drive-by confessions, parki...

“We cannot all see alike, but we can all do good.” ~ P.T. Barnum Jesus used many analogies when he talked about the Kingdom of God. He likened Heaven to a hidden treasure, a landowner, a pearl of great price, a mustard seed, and many other things throughout His public ministry. One parable he never told was the Circus and the Kingdom of God, but He might have if P.T Barnum had lived in first-century Jerusalem. The life of legendary entertainer Phineas T. Barnum was recently brought to the big screen by 20th Century Fox in the imaginative musical film The Greatest Showman . While the movie took many liberties in regards to historical accuracy, it highlighted some important spiritual principles from which we can learn and apply in our spiritual life. Barnum is portrayed as a disadvantaged visionary. While he is unsure of exactly how the gifts he possesses will unfold on the canvas of his life, he is certain that he is called to greatness. More importantly, he desires to share this ...

January is Respect Life Month in the Catholic Church; this is due in large part to the anniversary of Roe vs. Wade that legalized on-demand abortion in the United States. That decision made by the Supreme Court on January 22, 1973 declared war on innocent humans in the most vulnerable stages of our development. It’s hard to believe that for the past forty-four years the sanctuary of the womb has become a warzone. The ongoing conflict between the pro-life and abortion rights movement has been fought on many different battlefields; legislative, economic, social, cultural and religious. These are important battlefronts for us to remain engaged, but most importantly we must capture the heart to transform our society from a culture of death into a culture of life. Sometimes pro-life supporters and advocates (including myself) forget that those in the abortion rights movement have a heart and that we can appeal to it. Often we talk to and about our opponents as heartless monsters. I’m not ...

In a pivotal moment during the stop motion animated film Santa Claus is Coming to Town, the humbled and seemingly defeated Winter Warlock exclaims, “ I really am a mean and despicable creature at heart you know. It is so difficult to really change .” Kris Kringle’s reaction to that comment is a hearty laugh and the reply, “ Difficult? Why look here, changing from bad to good is as easy as taking your first step .” Then he breaks out in song, singing the children’s Christmas classic Put One Foot In Front Of The Other. As you watch Kringle prance around the enchanted forest emboldening penguins, reindeer and the icy Warlock to change, you can’t help but be nostalgically inspired. Yes, it only took 3 minutes and a little Christmas magic to convert the entire forest, not too bad for a day’s work at the North Pole.  While on the screen this conversion seems to happen instantly, the lyrics and message of Put One Foot In Front Of The Other seem to be saying something completely differe...

From the moment, his cleats crossed over the foul line on April 15, 1947 Jackie Robinson was verbally assaulted and targeted maliciously by fastballs. Racist managers taunted him, his teammates shunned him and opposing players regularly attempted to injure him. Although he was belittled, bruised and I’m sure close to the breaking point countless times throughout his historic baseball career; he not only managed to have a career batting average of .311, win a Rookie of the Year Award, a MVP award and a World Series (stats courtesy of www.baseballreference.com ) but he opened the door for men of all colors and from all corners of the earth to play in the Major Leagues. Jackie accomplished all this because he was courageously meek. He fought racism, bigotry and hatred with a bat and glove; not words or fists. Jackie robbed his critics and opponents of their perceived supremacy over him by stealing bases, not by slandering them in return. The results were not instantaneous and it certai...

The erosion of “absolute truth” in American society is a growing problem. For the past few weeks, I have been reflecting upon this in the wake of a bold statement made by President Obama during his second inauguration address. He said that we must not “ mistake absolutism for principle .” On the surface, this might seem like a benign or even acceptable statement to Americans. It’s not. Those four words from our president suggest that we should reject absolutes. Furthermore, he is alluding that the principles (beliefs which beckon action) by which you choose to live your life should not affect that of others. It’s like you deciding to call the color “ red ” by a new name “ green ” just because that is the “ personal principle ” by which you’d like to live your life. Moreover, it is beyond ridiculous to think that it is not going to affect your relationship with others. An example: We are walking through a garden on a spring day and I mention to you how nice the green leaves look. In res...