Monday, July 15th, 2013 | By Lisa Schmidt 
So what the heck does my ever-expanding belly and a couple rude comments have to do with the Good Samaritan? Here’s the nugget I’ve been chewing on. I’ve three months to go, folks, and I bet plenty more comments about my appearance and weight will still be hurled my way. While my physical posture may stink because of this growing babe in my womb, the posture of my heart doesn’t have to equally stink. True love for God compels us to show charity toward our neighbors, even those who say the darndest of things. . . . → Read More: No Neighbor, I’m Not Carrying Twins
Monday, February 11th, 2013 | By Joel Schmidt 
Announcing our St. Valentine’s Day 2013 “Why I Love My Wife” link-up event. Join me in rejecting a culture of locker-room talk that objectifies and degrades the women we love. Instead, let’s proclaim the Divine Gifts that they are to us. Strengthen your marriage by building up your wife. The gushing begins in just three days. . . . → Read More: “Why I Love My Wife” St. Valentine’s Day Link-Up Event
Tuesday, August 14th, 2012 | By Lisa Schmidt 
Saint Maximilian Kolbe often preached, “Don’t ever forget to love.” Kolbe was a red martyr, suffering persecution and death in defense of the faith. We won’t all be called to red martyrdom, but if we are taking our religion seriously, we most likely will experience white martyrdom. Have you been called to love, to place the needs of another before your own? And how far forward have you stepped? . . . → Read More: Forget Not Love: Advice from St. Maximilian Kolbe
Wednesday, August 1st, 2012 | By Joel Schmidt 
“We’re commanded to speak the truth in love.“
Congratulations to last week’s giveaway winner Marsha Johnson!
Enter to win a your own copy of Indivisible! Simply leave a comment here. Next Wednesday, August 8, we will randomly select this week’s winner. Giveaway sponsored by The Maximus Group. You also can buy Indivisible from Ignatius Press (with Voting Guidelines for Catholics bonus CD).
This is the fifth installment from our interview with Dr. Jay Richards; click the links below to read the previous ones:
Law, Liberty, and Freedom (July 4) Morality and Economics (July 11) Natural Law and Reason (July 18) Right to Life and Social Justice (July 25)
When we . . . → Read More: Indivisible: Jay Richards on Personal Holiness and Public Witness
Wednesday, July 11th, 2012 | By Joel Schmidt
Distinctions between social and economic issues are artificial.
Congratulations to last week’s giveaway winners Jessica Kiesling and Rita Rawson! See details below to enter this week’s Indvisible giveaway. You also can buy Indivisible from Ignatius Press (with Voting Guidelines for Catholics bonus CD).
This is the second installment from our interview with Dr. Jay Richards; read Part One here. In the wake of the recent Supreme Court decision regarding the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare), it seems appropriate to publish an excerpt in which he discussed the moral connection between social and economic issues.
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The . . . → Read More: Indivisible: Jay Richards on Morality and Economics
Wednesday, March 21st, 2012 | By Joel Schmidt Well-intentioned axiom has out-lived its usefulness, should be retired.
We’ve all been there.
You’re way behind on laundry so you dig deep into your closet, rummaging through clothing you haven’t worn in years. Amid all the outmoded items you find what appears to be a gem, something you used to wear all the time. Okay, it is a bit outdated. “But that just makes it funky, retro hip,” you say to yourself. As you put it on, it feels kind of awkward, but you tell yourself that’s precisely how it’s supposed to fit. One look in the mirror and you’re convinced. “This is going to be awesome!” And with that final . . . → Read More: Reconsidering the Seamless Garment
Tuesday, December 6th, 2011 | By Charlotte Upah Seeing & recognizing the true presence of God in our lives
Remember the song: “Do you hear what I hear? Said the night wind to the little lamb. Do you see what I see? Way up in the sky, little lamb?”
As I get ready for Christmas, what do I see?
Do I see myself setting out boxes of decorations, or recognizing the beauty of a single shining star?
Do I see myself bustling around shopping for the perfect gift, or recognizing the joy in a small child’s delight of a glittery bow?
Do I see myself hurrying to get a list of food prepared, or recognizing the love and . . . → Read More: Do You See What I See?
Friday, September 30th, 2011 | By Joel Schmidt October 2, 2011: Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Your life is not your own; being a good tenant means giving up ownership to God.
Respect Life Sunday, October 2, 2011
Home ownership the cornerstone of the American Dream, isn’t it? Yup, that’s the goal. Ownership means self-sufficiency and independence, two of the qualities we Americans value most. Ownership means we don’t have to rely on anyone else; we can provide for all our own needs, take care of ourselves just fine, thank you. Ownership gives us the one thing that prize most: freedom. Or does it?
Wild Grapes are Sour. As the people of God, we have a rather checkered history. No matter . . . → Read More: The Illusion of Ownership and the Slavery of Sin
Thursday, September 22nd, 2011 | By Joel Schmidt September 25, 2011: Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
To whom do you bow down?
Most of us live in a world of extraordinary luxury. We can have pretty much whatever we want whenever we want it. We have multiple fast food options at any hour. Satellite TV with DVR and on-demand movies is almost standard. Many stores offer instant credit with little or no criteria to allow us to indulge our shopping whims. When the rest of world fails to cater to our over-busy schedules, which are often more focused on entertainment than fulfillment, we cry “Foul!” Needless to say, humility and sacrifice don’t always come naturally; we don’t bow . . . → Read More: Putting on the Mind of Christ
Friday, September 9th, 2011 | By Joel Schmidt September 11, 2011: Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Have you ever held a grudge? C’mon, who among us hasn’t? When we have been wronged, our first instinct is usually to get angry. Our second instinct then is to hold onto our anger, because we somehow feel justified in doing so. Forgiveness comes later, much later if we’ve been deeply hurt. Sometimes, forgiveness never comes. In contrast, “The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion” (Ps 103). So, what is the price of holding onto anger, of failing to forgive? That is the subject of this week’s readings.
Who are we really hurting?
I’m better than . . . → Read More: Holding Back and Hurting Ourselves
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Lenten Series: Soup & Stories  40 days, 40 bowls of soup. Follow along, read some great stories, and find a delicious soup recipe or two! Read all about it here.
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