Everyone who is baptized into Christ is called to share in the priesthood of Christ, which means that understanding the priesthood helps each of us better understand our Baptism. In fact, in Baptism, the following words are spoken: “As Christ was anointed priest, prophet, and king, so may you live always as a member of his body, sharing everlasting life.” As disciples of Christ, we are called to love and serve God and others by […]
Sometimes, we need to be reminded of who loves us most. Throughout Scripture, God reminds his people of his great love for them. A closer look at the actual phrasing of the First Commandment illustrates this tendency on the part of God to remind his children of what he has done for them: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no […]
When we talk about “thin places” or “thin moments”—when the veil between heaven and earth seems very thin—we tend to think of places of great beauty or experiences of joy or accomplishment. But thin moments are not limited to experiences of beauty and joy. The truth is, we come face-to-face with mystery at moments of loss or pain. Sickness, the loss of our health, is one of those moments; it is an experience that makes us […]
Welcome to the fifth installment of my series “Discovering the Nearness of God: An Eight-Week Series on the Catholic Sacramental Vision.” This week we will explore the Sacrament of Reconciliation, with the theme of “Rescue Me!” All of us can recall watching footage on TV of heroic rescues as a victim finds himself or herself in swirling flood waters. The rescuer enters the swirling torrents and extricates the flailing victim, carrying him or her to […]
Welcome to the fourth installment of my series “Discovering the Nearness of God: An Eight-Week Series on the Catholic Sacramental Vision.” This week we will explore the Sacrament of the Eucharist, with the theme of “What Do You Crave?” Researchers tell us that the majority of us experience regular cravings for specific foods. It’s important to remember that hunger and cravings are not synonymous. The former is driven by the body, while the latter is driven […]
We use the phrase, “What’s come over you?” when someone appears to be affected by something. The phrase captures our belief that it is possible for something outside ourselves to affect us within and transform the way we think, feel, speak, and act. In the Gospels, people often wanted to know what had “come over” Jesus. People who saw Jesus perform miracles and heard him teach with such authority concluded that he had a spirit that […]
In some traditions (Celtic spirituality, for example), certain locations have been identified as spaces where God’s presence is heightened and therefore more easily encountered. These spaces are referred to as “thin spaces,” referring to the belief that God’s presence is normally veiled from human awareness except for certain places where that veil seems to be quite thin. Such thin spaces are usually majestic vistas of natural scenery: mountains, canyons, waterfalls, forests, rivers, oceans, and so […]
Welcome to the first installment of an eight-week series I’m doing this summer here on Catechist’s Journey on the Catholic sacramental vision. “Discovering the Nearness of God” will draw from my book, Living the Sacraments: Finding God at the Intersection of Heaven and Earth. I’d like to begin by stating emphatically that the most urgent message for us to spread today is the good news of the nearness of God! We live during a time […]
Copyright © 2006-2024 Loyola Press. All rights reserved. Any copying, redistribution, or retransmission of the contents of this service without the express written consent of Loyola Press is expressly prohibited.