Category: Columns

On
Fr. John Hebl

‘Your sins are forgiven you . . .’

Msgr. John Hebl

Editor’s Note: During Lent, a series of articles on Forgiveness will be presented by Msgr. John Hebl, pastor emeritus and charter member of the International Forgiveness Institute (IFI), and Robert Enright, University of Wisconsin-Madison professor, author, and founder of the IFI. This will help introduce the first ever International Conference on Forgiveness in July 2017 which IFI is sponsoring in the Holy City of Jerusalem.

A number of years ago, a priest friend, now deceased, shared a personal conversation he once had with a parishioner.

She stated she liked him as a confessor. Somewhat taken aback, he asked whether it was because of his education (he held two Master’s and a Doctorate degree), or his empathy, compassion, and understanding, or maybe even because he was elderly.

She said, “no it was none of these,” and then added, “It’s because you’re hard of hearing!”

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Julianne Nornberg

Recognizing the need for Confession in Lent

Everyday Faith column by Julianne Nornberg

Every Lent — thanks to an idea I found years ago on a Catholic blog listed below — we set up a crown of thorns in our living room. It’s just a small brown vine wreath covered with toothpicks, but it has a very specific purpose.

Each time one of my children performs a small sacrifice, or does something nice for someone else, he or she gets to pull a thorn from the crown of thorns.

Acts of sacrifice

One by one, the number of thorns dwindles, leaving the vine wreath bare. On Easter morning, the crown of thorns, now void of toothpicks, is covered with beautiful flowers, a symbol of how God took away our hurtful sins and replaced them with beauty of eternal life.

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On
Fr. Donald Lange

Father Mazzuchelli’s example can help us live a fruitful Lent

We begin Lent on March 1 by receiving a cross of ashes on our forehead. The ashes remind us that we are dust and unto dust we shall return.

Receiving the ashes also reminds us that while we are still alive, we are to repent and believe the Good News so that at Easter we can renew our Baptismal promises with deepened faith.

Venerable Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli died on February 23, 1864, during Lent. Thanks especially to the Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters, we know much about Father Samuel, who reflects many of Pope Francis’ virtues. Both can inspire us to live Lent in a Christ-like way that helps us continue our journey to heaven.

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On
Bishop Robert Barron

Evangelizing through the good

Anyone even vaguely acquainted with my work knows that I advocate vigorous argument on behalf of religious truth. I have long called for a revival in what is classically known as apologetics, the defense of the claims of faith against skeptical opponents. And I have repeatedly weighed in against a dumbed-down Catholicism.

Also, I have, for many years, emphasized the importance of beauty in service of evangelization. The Sistine Chapel Ceiling, the Sainte Chapelle, Dante’s Divine Comedy, Bach’s St. Matthew’s Passion, T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets, and the Cathedral of Chartres all have an extraordinary convincing power, in many ways surpassing that of formal arguments.

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Deacon Jack Fernan

Saving souls on the installment plan

Deacon Jack Fernan

As we approach Ash Wednesday and Lent, we are invited to look for our own penitential practices and the way for us to accomplish what God destined for our spiritual journey.

The most simple way, of course, is for us to first of all obey the 10 Commandments and to love God and our neighbor as we love ourself, and then to grow up spiritually.

Many years of haphazard spiritual practices have taught me to stop dilly-dallying around. If you too have not been very diligent about helping others grow spiritually, maybe we can get serious about improving our spiritual practices day by day and week by week.

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On
Fr. Tad Pacholczyk

Cohabitation before marriages raises a host of issues and concerns

Men and women clearly need each other and naturally gravitate towards arrangements of mutual support and lives of shared intimacy.

Because women are frequently the immediate guardians of the next generation, they have a particular need to ascertain if there will be steady support from a man prior to giving themselves sexually to him. The bond of marriage is ordered towards securing this critical element of ongoing commitment and support.

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On
Gwen Finnegan

Pro-lifers rally to defund Planned Parenthood

Gwen Finnegan

Amidst chants of “‘pro-life, it’s a lie — they don’t care if women die”‘ from a group of counter protesters organized by the International Socialist Organization out of Madison, about 60 pro-lifers from the Diocese of Madison gathered together for a Defund Planned Parenthood Rally on Saturday, Feb. 11.

The rally held outside the Planned Parenthood Clinic in Madison was organized by Vigil for Life-Madison.

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Julianne Nornberg

Being attentive is a small way to show our love

Everyday Faith column by Julianne Nornberg

Before embarking on any trip, in my family it is a common custom for my husband or myself to ask, “Is everyone wearing shoes?” before we start the car.

This custom developed after I drove to the grocery store one day and discovered one of our children clad only in bare feet.

Recently, as my husband asked this customary question of our four children in the car, he decided to test their attentiveness as well.

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On
Bishop Robert Barron

The Crown and society’s core values

The Netflix original series The Crown, which has to do with the last months of the reign of King George VI and the first years of the reign of his daughter, Queen Elizabeth II, is just the kind of program that Americans in particular seem naturally to love.

It features beautiful photography of palaces, processions, and formal receptions; and it provides a behind-the-scenes look at the ne plus ultra of the British aristocracy. Consider it Downton Abbey on steroids.

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