Meditations for the spiritual edification of our readers
The Desert Fathers Speak on Joy, Love and the Mercy of God If we keep remembering the wrongs which men have done us, we destroy the power of the remembrance of God… —Abba Macarius the Great On Joy Abba Syncletica said, “In the beginning there are a great many battles and a good deal of suffering [...]
Here, a 19th century painting of Christ walking with the two disciples on the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus, by Swiss painter Robert Zünd (1827-1909) The Road to Emmaus Whatever purpose the two disciples had in journeying to Emmaus, certainly their original plans were entirely disrupted by the company of the mysterious teacher who [...]
"Crucifixion," Opera di Lorenzo Monaco, Galleria dell'Accademia in Florence A reflection on the Eucharist, and on the solemnity of our devotion when receiving Holy Communion, by a Bishop from Kazakhstan Bishop Athanasius Schneider of Astana, Kazakhstan, has for some years been making a name for himself as one of the staunchest defenders in the [...]
“Mercy is God’s distinctive mark,” says Fr. John Saward, the formerly Anglican, now Catholic priest in England: it is His goodness “coming to the aid of our misery, especially the misery of sin.” But, as Pope Francis explains in this beautiful talk, his first catechesis on mercy, this attribute of God is not incidental to Him, [...]
Pope Francis gave an eloquent homily at his morning Mass in the chapel of the Domus Santa Marta on November 23, the Feast of Pope St. Clement I. Clement was a disciple of St. Peter and was Pope from 92 to 99 A.D. (the exact years are not fully certain). He was considered by many Christians [...]
“Nostalgia” for God can lead us to the joy of rediscovering Him In his morning homily at Domus Santa Marta on October 1, the feast day of St. Therese of Lisieux — so important in the spiritual life of Jorge Mario Bergoglio — Pope Francis spoke of two key issues for the life of each Christian: [...]
With this issue we are beginning a new “rubrica” (section) of the magazine, named “From the Domus Santa Marta.” I have chosen the passages from Pope Francis’ morning homilies which struck me most deeply, and helped deepen my own faith. In these homilies, he seems to be and to speak as a parish priest with his parishioners. Reading [...]
Christmas Day For Christmas Day, we offer a reflection on the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, based on the Akathist Hymn on that theme. The Akathist Hymn is one of the most well-loved services of devotion in the Eastern Churches. Pious tradition states that the original Akathist of Our Lady was composed in the imperial [...]
“There are four planes or fields in which God is reflected. Two within, reason and revelation, or the light of nature in the intelligence, and the illumination of the Holy Spirit elevating the intelligence by a supernatural light. Two also without, creation and the Church, or in other words, the world of nature, which is [...]
This feast, which providentially falls on the same day as that of Our Lady of Fatima, was started by St. Peter Julian Eymard (1811-1868) of France, who had a strong devotion to the Holy Eucharist and to Our Lady and began his priestly life in the Society of Mary. His heart burned with the desire to [...]