He is Risen! Alleluia! Alleluia! It is finally Easter! And we are now in the midst of the Easter Octave–a total of eight Solemnities in a row! No fasting, penance or mortification allowed! We are to feast and rejoice and be glad because Jesus has made all things new, and darkness, sin and death have power no more! So this week’s addition to the Connections Between Faith and Daily Life YouTube series focuses upon whether we are still rejoicing during this Easter Octave (and if we’re not, why we should be). Watch: Are You Still Rejoicing? In our world where […]
christina.semmens
387 posts
Today is my favorite day of the Sacred Triduum—Holy Saturday. Why you may ask? Because it is a day that is full of possibilities that we know are going to be made real. Very simply, we know darkness, sin and death are conquered. We know that Jesus will rise from the dead on Easter morning. We know the ending of the story. But often, I think knowing how the story ends makes us impatient. We want all the possibilities now. It’s like Christmas Eve and we want to open our gifts before we go to Christmas Eve service. But it’s […]
During this Holy Week, I thought it was especially appropriate to share this recent conversation that I had with K. Heidi Fishman. Heidi and I connected through a mutual friend on SmartCatholics, and was overjoyed to have the chance to have a conversation about her book, and her efforts within Holocaust education. Primary among those efforts was the writing of her first novel, Tutti’s Promise , which was published by MBPublishing in April 2017. She won the 2015 Joseph Zola Memorial Holocaust Educator Award from The Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies of the University of Hartford for the book proposal, and she continues […]
Holy Week is finally upon us! And with Holy Week comes the great challenge of living the great Triduum–Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday, Easter–in the midst of a world that continues to move along as if there is nothing special about these days. Work deadlines still occur, school and sports activities continue to happen, family responsibilities are ongoing, etc., etc. etc. Bottom line, the world doesn’t stop because it’s Holy Week. But this week should look different if we are followers of Christ. Our very lives should be proclaiming the reality of what we profess–that Jesus is our […]
Terry Modica is co-founder and Executive Director of Good News Ministries (GNM), author, international speaker, retreat director, photographer, podcast host, and faith formation teacher. Terry and I had connected through our respective work within the SmartCatholics community, and recently, Terry and I had the opportunity to speak about the work that she and GNM does. In addition, Terry and I reflected and shared about some of the different practices that we use to help us move through Holy Week with greater awareness, reverence and deep openness to whatever graces God wishes to bestow upon us during this holiest of weeks. Check […]
Recently, I had the great pleasure to sit down and have a wonderful conversation with Becky Eldredge, Ignatian-trained spiritual director, retreat facilitator, and author of two books: The Inner Chapel (Loyola Press, April 2020) and Busy Lives & Restless Souls (Loyola Press, 2017). Becky leads a ministry that offers spiritual direction, resources, and retreats (virtual and in-person) rooted in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. Like me, she is passionate about Ignatian spirituality and teaching people how to pray and discern, and help people make room for God in the busyness of their lives and invite them deeper in their walk with Christ. Check […]
Yesterday, I had the great privilege of being on the Living Catholic! podcast and YouTube show hosted by Dr. David Anders. We spoke about the “Vocation to Personal Holiness” and how we might practically go about living our personal vocation in daily life. Our conversation was wide-ranging as we spoke about what holiness means, the tools that the Church gives us to pursue holiness, the importance of friendship and mentors, how the Eucharist plays a key role in our journey, and more! You can listen to our entire conversation here! I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Dr. Anders, but my […]
The end is in sight! Holy Week is just around the corner, but we still have Lenten promises of prayer, fasting and almsgiving to remain faithful to during these next 12 days until we reach Easter Sunday. If you are anything like me, you might be eagerly awaiting the end of all the different mortifications we might have promised to do for our Lord during this Lenten season! BUT, once you celebrate the great octave of Easter, and before you set aside all of your sacrifices permanently, I wanted to share 5 benefits for us that come from mortification. So […]
On Friday evening, on the Solemnity of Saint Joseph, I was privileged to serve as a guest on the Journeys in Faith YouTube Show hosted by Anne DeSantis. Our conversation was wide-ranging as we spoke about my own journey of faith and then also about the work that I do, especially within the Say Yes to Holiness Movement. You can listen to our entire conversation here! Hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did, and may the graces gained for us by the intercession of Saint Joseph continue to bless us and all of our loved ones as […]
In this podcast episode, Christina shares Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet that will help you grow your trust in God and persevere so you can finish the Lenten season strong. You check out the entire episode here: Episode 57–“Tips to Persevere and Increase Your Trust in God To Finish Lent Strong” May this podcast help to inspire, encourage and accompany you in being able to keep doing WHATEVER IT TAKES to keep striving for holiness during this Lenten season. Listen to: Episode 57–“Tips to Persevere and Increase Your Trust in God To Finish Lent Strong” If you prefer […]