Tag: love

On
Fr. Donald Lange

Remember the elderly in the autumn of their lives

October 1 is International Day of Older Persons as declared by the United Nations.

It is appropriate to celebrate this day during the fall of the year in order to focus upon the elderly’s autumn blessings and needs. An elderly Italian couple reminded me of this recently.

Visiting the elderly

On August 9, 2016, in Rome, Italy, four policemen visited the home of Michele, a 94-year-old man and Jole, his 89-year-old wife.

After 70 years of marriage, they still loved each other, but they were suffering from the cross of loneliness, partially because their neighbors were vacationing and also because of upsetting TV reports about terrorists’ attacks and abused children.

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On
Julianne Nornberg

Sharing, teaching God’s love with children

Everyday Faith column by Julianne Nornberg

The face of my four-year-old scrunched up as he sounded out a word in a book. “Gah,” he said, successfully figuring out the sound of the letter “G.”

He considered the next letter, “O,” thought a moment, then said, “Ahh.”

Finally he got to the last letter, “D,” and put the sounds together. “Gah-ahh-dd,” he said slowly, enunciating each letter individually, his eyebrows knit in concentration.

“Gahd.”

Suddenly, his eyes flew open, his eyebrows shot up, and the light of understanding emanated from his joyous grin as he shouted out, “God! It says God!”

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On
Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

Peace begins with each one of us

Editor's View by Mary C. Uhler

Almost daily we hear reports of violence in our nation and the world. We experience sorrow, anger, and fear each time we learn about another shooting.

Eventually, we almost feel numb to the violence. We don’t know what we can do — if anything — in the wake of so much hatred in the world.

Of course, we can and should pray. Pray for the victims, their families, the communities affected, and even for the perpetrators. But what else can we do to bring peace to our world?

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On
Fr. Donald Lange

Importance of fathers

In his general audience on January 28, 2015, Pope Francis stated, “In modern societies, we are experiencing a crisis of fatherhood.

“In the past, it was common to perceive fathers as authoritarian and sometimes repressive; but, today we sense father’s uncertainty and confusion about his role. Without father figures, young people often feel ‘orphaned’, left adrift at a critical moment in their growth and development.”

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On
Fr. Donald Lange

How do you spell love? M-o-t-h-e-r

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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On
Julianne Nornberg

Learning the meaning of trust

Everyday Faith column by Julianne Nornberg

Today I found a marble while doing the laundry. There it was, blue and shiny among the grey folds of my son’s sweatshirt.

My heart leaped as I picked it up and admired its beauty, thinking about how Michael would smile when I showed him his lost treasure.

But just as suddenly as I found it, the marble slipped from my fingers and bounced into the dusty unknown beneath the hot water heater. Sighing in defeat after peering into the darkness, I shrugged and continued with my work.

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On
Kevin Wondrash

Youth Service Council raises money for the poor in Lebanon

MADISON — The Madison Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SVdP) Youth Service Council (YSC) recently sent more than $1,000 to St. Vincent de Paul-Lebanon to assist the poor, unemployed, and refugees there.

While attending a national St. Vincent de Paul meeting in Providence, R.I., last fall, YSC members Claire Finucane and DC Morris heard Julien Spiewak, the society’s international secretary general, outline the struggles the country of Lebanon currently faces and how the Society of St. Vincent de Paul is trying to help.

Challenges in Lebanon

The SVdP has been active in Lebanon since 1860 but has recently faced greater challenges than usual.

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On
Morgan Smith

The beauty of striving

Morgan Smith

On a recent trip to Florida, I went kayaking in a nature preserve. I started in the Gulf of Mexico and followed the shoreline into a creek that wove and curved through a forest of banyan trees.

Banyan trees are so mysterious. Their roots rise up out of the ground and intertwine to make the trunk and roots shoot out of the branches and reach toward the ground­­ — actually, I cannot tell exactly where the roots are originating from as they flow together in a beautiful and tangled mess.

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