Sestina for Miracle-Seekers

Hearing that Benedict of Nursia (480-547) miraculously returned a shattered earthenware pot to its original pristine condition, people came from afar for his healing touch. So shaken was he by […]

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Mission San José y San Miguel de Aguayo

In late summer 2021, as a sort of final “hoorah!” before holiday ended and the term began again, I whisked my family off on a three-day vacation to San Antonio, […]

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The Offering of St. Ignatius

What is a saint? Why should we give more attention to some believers than others? The disagreement between Protestants on the one hand and Roman Catholics and the Orthodox on […]

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The Voyage of the Titan

“It could never happen here.” Thomas was aghast. Although he was typically quite restrained, his face betrayed his frustration as he continued expressing his opposition to Julian’s almost unbelievable proposal. […]

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But It’s Not Fair

What happens when human suffering suddenly enters into a life that was endowed with renown, wealth, and political office — everything that is assumed to lead to a successful and […]

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Prelude

This poem was inspired by a moment of brightness that lit up my garden in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. In the background is the picture of a little child, full […]

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The Kingdom of Kings and Queens: A Parable

From a distant, war-plagued land, a lone traveler set out to find a safer place to live. Carrying his few possessions on his back, he walked for days with no […]

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Adventure & Faith: Lessons from the Life of St. Brendan the Navigator and Bilbo Baggins

Victorian writer George Eliot once wrote that, “Adventure is not outside a man; it is within.”[1] Yet most people today do not sense or experience an adventurous life. Mostly, it […]

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From Jokers to Fools: The Fire of Notre Dame as a Call to Holiness

We are fools for Christ’s sake. . . . When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we entreat. 1 Corinthians 4:10, 12-13 (ESV)   In the late […]

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Fire and Water: Three Kwansabas in Memory of the Ugandan Martyrs, Charles Lwanga and Companions

Charles Lwanga served as a page in the court of the 19th century Ugandan King Mwanga, who sexually abused him and the other boys. Their baptism and dedication to Christ […]

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