May the joy of the Risen Lord fill your hearts this Easter season By Bishop Mark Beckman Dear Brothers and Sisters, Holy Week marks the central week of our liturgical year. Each year we commemorate the sacred events that mark our entrance into the great Christian Passover. The week begins …
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The Holy Fathers on the gifts of the Spirit
Confirmation allows us to experience a ‘personal Pentecost’ that leads to new life in the Spirit By Father Randy Stice In last month’s column, I looked at how the sacrament of confirmation fulfilled Bishop Mark Beckman’s prayer for a new Pentecost and his desire to equip our young people. Confirmation …
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Church’s teaching on immigration is clear
The Church cares for everyone, regardless of their status as legal or illegal By Deacon Bob Hunt There has been a great ruckus since Donald Trump became president over the role of the Church in politics. This was true when Joe Biden, who insisted that he was a devout Catholic, …
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Lenten ‘madness’ can make us all better
The fight for spiritual growth is harder when the opponent is ourselves By George Valadie I love “March Madness.” Our whole family does. If you’re not familiar, it’s a phrase that originated at the high-school level, but once uttered on national TV has since become synonymous with the season-ending NCAA …
Lent: A spiritual springtime
Practical thoughts on celebrating the Lenten season that is upon us By Bishop Mark Beckman Lent is the time each year when we are immersed more deeply in the mystery of Jesus Christ. During the course of the year, it is easy to lose track of what being a Christian …
Focus on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving
They represent the totality of the Christian life, which calls us out of ourselves By Deacon Bob Hunt Lent is a season of transformation. The Church calls us to focus on three aspects of our Christian life: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. But focusing on these aspects of the Christian life …
Unspoken love is real, but not with God
St. Valentine’s legacy was as priest, martyr, rebel, and protector of forbidden love By George Valadie Hoping you have a happy Valentine’s Day! Or that at least you don’t mess it up. I’ve done that on occasion. You’d think since it originated somewhere in the 14th century, we’d have figured …
CCETN: A beacon of hope
Imagining a world without Catholic Charities is difficult and disheartening By John Mecklenborg Looking back on Inauguration Day, it’s easy to feel as if you are peering across the stern toward a fading shoreline. The emergent waters of this new administration are tempestuous—like a Nor’easter overwhelming the weary and making …
Praying for ‘a new springtime of Pentecost’
Confirmation allows us to experience a ‘personal Pentecost’ that leads to new life in the Spirit By Father Randy Stice In his Advent column, Bishop Mark Beckman shared that his prayer for our diocese is for “a new springtime of Pentecost,” and that one of his priorities for the coming …
‘Love in the Flesh’
Let us examine our hearts and resolve to improve the world By Bishop Mark Beckman Today, I write on the feast of the Presentation of the Lord, having just celebrated the liturgy in our Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. Anna and Simeon meet God in that ancient …
A new year of hope
Jubilee marks 2025 as extraordinary in the life of the Church By Bishop Mark Beckman The beginning of a new year is always a great time to reflect on the past year and look forward to the future. This new year of 2025 is an extraordinary one in the life …
Popular piety is ‘a precious treasure’
Pilgrimages, Stations, and the rosary extend but do not replace the Church’s liturgical life By Father Randy Stice All of the Church’s activities are directed to our holiness and God’s glory, and this is most efficaciously achieved in the liturgy, “and especially from the Eucharist,” from which, as a font, …
