Wednesday, April 3rd, 2013 | By Joel & Lisa Schmidt
C is for Confession; we’re talking hers and his experiences. What’s the difference? Nothing that really matters. We both went, confessed, and were forgiven. We both received the graces given through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. While our experiences were wildly different, at the end of the day, they are the same. We examined our consciences, made good confessions, and received absolution from our sins. We were washed clean by a shower of grace by God’s mercy. . . . → Read More: Confessions: Hers and His
“I Failed Lent!” is an appropriate and accurate assessment of how I feel about my 2013 Lenten spiritual journey. I’m not sure how it all happened other than to simply say Joel and I are dealing with some stuff … scratch that … I am dealing with some stuff that in reality won’t bother me one bit as I lay dying. Yet I let that stuff consume my time and emotional energy for the past six weeks. I allowed the insignificant to truly get in the way of a much-needed cleansing this Lent. . . . → Read More: I Failed Lent! Time to Begin Again
What do Julie and I talk about this week on Catholic Women Now? We highlight some terrific Holy Week activities, and we unveil a really (really!) cool way to get you, our listeners, engaged in the show. Check it out — we’re Catholic Women Now, heard only on Iowa Catholic Radio; streaming online, too. . . . → Read More: Catholic Women Now: Holy Week Activities
While reflecting on today’s Mass readings, a day we celebrate the Transfiguration, I am moved by words written by the Holy Father. “The Transfiguration is a prayer event; it displays visibly what happens when Jesus talks with his Father: the profound interpenetration of his being with God, which then becomes pure light. In his oneness with the Father, Jesus is himself “light from light.” The reality that he is in the deepest core of his being, which Peter tried to express in his confession—that reality becomes perceptible to the senses at this moment: Jesus being in the light of God, his own being-light as Son.” From Jesus of Nazareth by Pope Benedict XVI. . . . → Read More: What the Transfiguration Says About Prayer
My mission as of late was to figure out once and for all how to decorate the mantle during Lent. In other words, I’ve been spending way too much time on Pinterest in search of ideas to beg, borrow, and steal. ‘Twas not all for naught — one idea here, another idea there, and voila: a Stations of the Cross suitable for the home mantle. . . . → Read More: Make Your Own At-Home Stations of the Cross
Saturday, February 16th, 2013 | By Joel & Lisa Schmidt
We have joined the crew at Catholic Stand, a website dedicated to providing perspectives and education on Church teachings. We will contribute a column on the third Saturday of each month. Our inaugural post covers a range of topics related to holy water, Lent, and the Sacrament of Baptism. . . . → Read More: Catholic Stand: Lent, Holy Water, Baptism and Infants
Editor’s Note: It’s my pleasure to share my friend Christine’s story with you about why she gave up, of all things, make-up for Lent last year. Make-up? Indeed! It’s a fun, light-hearted read, but Christine also shared some very personal thoughts about her Lenten journey. It forced me to ask: to what do I cling, worship, what have I made into an idol? As we approach Ash Wednesday, these are certainly some good questions to take to prayer. . . . → Read More: Barefaced & Beautiful: She Gave up Make-Up for Lent
Time for another edition in our Take 5 video series! This time Lisa interviews the multi-talented Kathleen Basi. The two chat about the books Kathleen wrote for Catholic families, how to support families with special needs children, and what it’s like to teach natural family planning with your spouse. . . . → Read More: Take 5 with Kathleen Basi
The name “Maundy Thursday” is derived from Jesus’ “mandate,” to love one another as he loves us. This day celebrates the institution of the sacraments of Holy Eucharist and Ordination.
Ford Madox Brown, circa 1865
Father,
On the night before he was to give himself up to die for the salvation of the world, Our Lord Jesus Christ gave you thanks and praise, by celebrating communion with his followers. Accept this prayer, O Lord, as a sign of my thanks and praise, and may you draw me ever closer to you, through the body and blood of your Son. I pray in his name.
Lent, a season particularly focused on renewal and conversion, begins today.
Flip through the pages of most current home and garden magazines and you will easily find articles with tips for spring-cleaning. I recently found an article titled, “Spring Clean Your Finances.” The first paragraph read, “Spring is the season of renewal — the time to get out the gardening tools, begin a new exercise program, or tackle the dirt that’s accumulated in the house.”
Let’s focus on that first line: Spring is the season of renewal.
What a great reminder that the season of Lent is also a season of renewal for Christians. As we approach the Easter . . . → Read More: Ash Wednesday: Begin Again
Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold. In that hour, vouchsafe, O my God! to hear my prayer and grant my desires (mention your intentions here), through the merits of Our Savior Jesus Christ, and of His Blessed Mother. Amen.
Thousands of people gathered in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe July 31, 2002, for the canonization of Juan Diego, to whom the Blessed Mother appeared in the 16th century. Pope John Paul II celebrated the ceremony at which the poor Indian peasant became the Church’s first saint indigenous to ... […]
Recent Comments