Memorial Day is a federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May.
On Memorial Day, we honor military personnel who died in the service of our country, particularly those who died in battle or from wounds sustained in battle.
This includes military chaplains.
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In Isaiah 49:15 Isaiah asks “Can a mother forget her baby, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.”
This passage praises mothers as symbols of amazing compassion, never forgetting their beloved children. Pope Francis said that a mother is concerned “above all about the health of her children. She cares for them with great and tender love the way Mary, our spiritual, heavenly mother, cares for us.”
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For some astronauts, an unexpected result of their participation in the space program was a deepening of their faith in God.
Frank Borman was commander of the first space crew to travel beyond Earth’s orbit. Looking down on Earth from 250,000 miles away, he radioed back a message, quoting Genesis 1: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and earth.”
He later added, “After viewing Earth from space, I experienced an enormous feeling that there had to be a power greater than any of us, that there was a God and a beginning.”
Greta Weissman, a […]
A friend sent me a Christmas card that he proudly created. It featured a picture of Mary lovingly holding the infant Jesus. Under the picture were the words, “Who is Missing?”
The answer is St. Joseph, who as the head of the Holy Family, was there to support Mary as she gave birth to Jesus on Christmas. We honor him as a great saint because he was the foster father of Jesus who with Mary guided young Jesus as he grew in wisdom, understanding, and knowledge.
Joseph exercised his role as protector of Mary and Jesus discreetly, humbly, and silently. He did so with an unfailing presence and fidelity, even when he found it difficult and confusing.
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Christians around the world mark Lent’s beginning by celebrating Ash Wednesday, Feb. 10 this year.
Lent has a surprising modern appeal. Some pastors say that next to Christmas, more people come to church on Ash Wednesday than on any other day, including Easter.
The ashes help us face a basic truth that we may try to avoid, namely death. When we receive ashes, the priest or deacon says, “Remember, you are dust and unto dust, you shall return.” They may also say, “Repent and believe the Good News!”
Combined, the words remind us that we will die and return to dust; therefore, while we’re still alive, we are to repent and believe the Good News!
Have you ever seen a speaker weep when giving a talk on abortion? I have.
When I taught high school religion, a pro-life doctor gave a talk to my classes. As he described the tragedy of aborted babies, he wept.
Never before or since have I seen anyone weep while talking about aborted unborn babies. His tears convinced me that he truly believed that unborn babies were human persons and aborting them destroyed human life.
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Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is an American federal holiday that marks the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. It is observed on the third Monday of January, which is around Dr. King’s birthday, January 15. This year it is observed on January 18.
In his speech to Congress in September of 2015, Pope Francis lifted up four Americans who worked for social justice. They were two non-Catholics, Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Jr., and two Catholics, Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton. Crux columnist John L. Allen Jr. called them the pope’s “Fantastic Four” who stood up for the poor.
A small business manager asked employees, who wished, to write out their New Year’s resolutions. He promised to post them by lunchtime on the bulletin board. It sounded like fun.
When the resolutions were posted, the employees gathered eagerly around the bulletin board. Suddenly one employee began to complain angrily to everyone there that her resolution wasn’t posted. She griped that she felt left out again.
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In John 3:16 it says, “For God so loved the world that God gave His only Son so that everyone who believes in him might not perish, but have might have eternal life.”
Gilbert Keith Chesterton wrote, “Out of love for us, the mighty hands that created the sun, moon, and stars became so tiny that they could not reach up to touch the noses of the oxen who tried to warm him with their hayed breath.”
Deeply moved by the infant Jesus, St. Thérèse of Lisieux asked, “Why should we fear God who became a tiny baby?”
