In light of all the many events that have gone on nationally and personally, it’s hard to believe that only 4 days has passed since I last posted. For those who may be unaware, the reports out of Washington DC and Pennsylvania regarding the abuse of minors by Catholic clergy during the last 60 years has been a punch to the gut for sure. Not because I am surprised by the depravity of human beings, but rather because to be confronted by the reality of evil in the world is always discouraging–if we only focus upon the evil. One of […]
christina.semmens
51 posts
Today is the Memorial of St Maximilian Kolbe. He was a Franciscan priest who was martyred in 1941 in the Auschwitz concentration camp when he volunteered to take the place of a husband and father who had been chosen to die by the Nazi prison guards. St Maximilian had a deep and profound devotion to Mary, the Mother of God. St Maximilian’s title of endearment for Mary was Immaculata, and he founded the Militia Immaculata–which has the goal of sharing with the world how Mary’s intercession and support help us on our journey towards holiness. Here is an excerpt from […]
I have found that beginning and ending each day properly, or “right ordered”, is one of the keys to experiencing peace in my life. To be “right-ordered” means simply to put first things first. And that means my first, and my last, thoughts are of God. My first thought in the morning is encapsulated in my saying “Good morning” as I offer the well known Suscipe prayer written by St Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits: “Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will. Whatever I have or hold, you have […]
I have now been blogging daily for more than a month (actually 38 days!) and I am in awe at how our Lord has sustained and helped me in this endeavor–just as He said he would when I first committed to 30 days straight. I admit that my hesitancy to a daily writing commitment was partially a fear that I wouldn’t be able to have anything to say, but also because I was forgetting that God is the One in charge to begin with! LOL But my willingness to trust and step out in faith has resulted by my life […]
One of my favorite spiritual authors is Father Jacques Philippe, a member of the Community of the Beatitudes in France. The members of the Community are from all states of life–married and non-married laity, priests, religious, consecrated virgins–and are actively engaged in the service of the poor and proclamation of the Gospel while living a contemplative vocation based on Carmelite spirituality. I have been blessed to have been on a retreat with Fr Jacques as retreat master, and I can attest to the profound wisdom he shares clearly and simply about growing in your interior life of prayer and meditation. […]
Almost 20 years ago, there was a movie called, Pay It Forward. The movie chronicles how a 12 year old young man is given an assignment to think of a way to change the world and put it into action. The result was the launch of a goodwill movement known as “pay it forward” in which people did acts of charity for random people in anticipation of their someday receiving charitable acts from others themselves. The idea of “paying it forward” is a great way to look at the the process of working to grow in daily virtue. Because the […]
Problems Call for Repentance
Here in Alabama, another school year has begun. (Yes, you read that properly) Anyway, the last two days I have seen a flurry of photos posted on social media by many friends who are parents of school age children. There are lots of smiles amongst the nice, crisp school uniforms or new outfits that capture the moment when all things are possible during the upcoming academic year. New beginnings are like that–lots of potential and possibilities, and great hope tends to surround those moments. But as parents, we also tend to worry a bit. Is our son or daughter going […]
So today’s Gospel gives us the story of Jesus walking on water and how Peter had the courage to get out of the boat and walk on water, too–until he stopped trusting Jesus. Peter’s initial success and then subsequent failure prompted me to reflect today upon the many times that I have done the same thing in my own life. Where I am going along just fine, but then I get distracted by the storm or the waves or the leaky boat or the people around me, and I doubt. And then I become frightened by the prospect of what […]
So yesterday as I shared how the Harry Potter series can help in cultivating a life of Christian virtue, I made mention that the best stories prepare us to engage more fully with the Story. How is that the case? Because the more we prepare our hearts and minds, the better able we can dive into the essence, purpose and meaning of the Story found in Sacred Scripture and discover all four of its Senses. And when we experience all four senses, we prepare our heart and mind to receive the fullness of the Word. So what are these four […]