Tag: love

On
Fr. Donald Lange

Widows contribute much to the Church and family

Losing a beloved spouse to death is one of the most painful human experiences. I saw this pain in my mother, two sisters, and other married women when their spouses died. I have also listened to men, whose wives died, pour out their grief.

The word “widow” comes from a Sanskrit word meaning empty. When a woman loses the husband whom she loves, she often experiences pain, emptiness, and even temporary anger. So does a widower. A good marriage joins the couple as two in one flesh, physically, spiritually, and emotionally. To marry is to open oneself to love and joy, but also to pain.

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On
Jean Mueller

Helping an aging parent from a distance

Q. I am becoming more and more concerned that my mom is not doing well.

She has lost many of her friends and when we speak I think there may be some depression going on.

I live on the West coast and can’t be there to actually see what is happening. What can I do? How do I get mom to accept help? (From daughter in San Francisco, Calif.)

A. Your concerns are very legitimate. Losses can be very hard to deal with especially as we get older and have fewer options to replace the loss.

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On
Jean Mueller

Alzheimer’s and dementia

Q. I have heard people use the term dementia, and then others will say Alzheimer’s disease. What is the difference and how can I tell if my dad is developing either one of them? (From a son in Southern Wisconsin.) 

This is a very common question and there is a lot of confusion about this, so I am glad you asked.

Dementia is used as more of a general term that describes some symptoms.

The symptoms included in dementia are forgetfulness, repeating words or statements, and loss of judgment, to name a few.

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On
Fr. Paul Ugo Arinze

Ten new seminarians point to Church’s hopeful future

As the fall season rolls in and many students are headed back to school, the seminarians for the diocese are all heading back to school to continue with their seminary formation after a much deserved summer break.

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Starting this fall, we will have seminarians in seminaries in Detroit, Mich.; Denver, Colo.; Washington, D.C.; Winona and St. Paul, Minn.; Seward,

Neb.; South Orange, N.J.; and Rome, Italy. Their years of seminary formation range from freshmen in college to the final year of theology.

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On
Fr. Donald Lange

Mary’s Assumption inspires us to follow her example

On November 1, 1950, more than 500,000 joyful people packed St. Peter’s Square to hear Pope Pius XII proclaim the dogma of the Assumption of Mary into Heaven.

In Munificentissimus Deus, Pope Pius XII proclaimed that “the “Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into Heavenly glory.”

In no. 59 of the Dogmatic Constitution Lumen Gentium, the Second Vatican Council affirmed this dogma of the Church.

God’s children in need

Pope Pius XII proclaimed the dogma of the Assumption to counter the loss of reverence and respect for the God-given identity of every human being.

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On
Deacon Jack Fernan

In time of crisis, there must be peace and discourse

To the editor:

In a time of crisis in our land, our people are called to repent, to pray, and to praise God. We are to be a prayerful, sacrificial people. We are to be a “Light for the World.”

We are to forgive and start anew. We are to recognize that God calls us to reconciliation. We must reach out to our neighbor — to start anew and seek the highest holiness.

The common ground must be love, peace, charity, and respect for others. Our history of kindness must be carried forward without reservation for past hurts.

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On
Sr. Margie Lavonis

Redemptive suffering is part of being a Christian

Cutting Edge by Sr. Margie Lavonis

It is not easy to block out the multiple cries of pain and suffering that permeate the world. It is almost deafening.

All one has to do is turn on the radio, read the newspaper, watch television, or go online. We are bombarded with news of pain and suffering, almost to the saturation point. I think of the people in Libya, Haiti, Japan, and others affected by war and natural disasters. It gives me an overwhelming feeling.

Good people suffer

A couple of years ago I attended several lectures on the martyrs of El Salvador who were killed during a civil war that took place there in the 1970’s and ’80s. Archbishop Oscar Romero, four women missionaries, and several Jesuits — only to name a few of hundreds of people — were brutally murdered because they spoke out against the intense suffering of the Salvadoran people and a system of government that perpetuated it.

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On
Fr. Donald Lange

Reconciliation shows us God’s boundless mercy

A college student wrote in her college newspaper that sometimes she wished that she were a Catholic. Then, like her Catholic friends, she could confess her sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Through the absolution of the priest, she would be assured of God’s forgiveness.

God’s merciful forgiveness is expressed in the words of absolution: “God, the Father of mercies, through the death and the resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to Himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

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