I absolutely adore the changing of seasons, particularly as winter gives way to spring. The grass begins to green up, trees blossom and here in the South, azaleas bloom. If you are a golfer, or a fan of golf, blooming azaleas are a sign of another beautiful occurrence that happens every spring–the Masters. For those of you who may not be familiar, the Masters is the premiere professional golf tournament in the world played at one of the most beautiful golf courses in the world, Augusta National, in Augusta, Georgia. Augusta was designed and built by Bobby Jones, the first […]
holiness
220 posts
“Theology of the Body” (TOB) is the name given to a series of 129 talks that Saint John Paul II gave each week from September 1979 to November 1984. His talks on human love in God’s divine plan were drawn from Sacred Scripture and the teachings of the Church, but were also rooted in John Paul’s own pastoral experience of encountering the desperate need of men and women to know the truth of God’s love for them. In a nutshell, Theology of the Body is a biblical reflection on the meaning of human embodiment as male and female from the […]
Was reading an article today entitled “The Evolution of Anxiety: Why We Worry and What to Do About It.” by James Clear, author of the book, Atomic Habits. Why am I highlighting an article concerned primarily with behavioral psychology and stress management? Because yesterday marked the beginning of the season of Lent for most of the Christian world. (I say most because my fellow Orthodox do not begin Lent for another week. But I digress…) So what does Lent have to do with stress? Well, the image above might give you a clue. Lent is FULL of things that we […]
For those who may be unfamiliar, missionary discipleship is a term made popular by Pope Francis, especially in his encyclical, Evangelium Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel). In paragraph 120 of his encyclical, Pope Francis writes: “In virtue of their baptism, all the members of the People of God have become missionary disciples (cf. Mt 28:19). All the baptized, whatever their position in the Church, or their level of instruction in the faith, are agents of evangelization.” What this means is that each and every one of us—EVERY baptized man and woman, regardless of whether you have any position in the Church, and regardless […]
Lent is a clarion call to change. It is our opportunity to reject self-satisfaction, and the idea that we are already “good enough” or “not that bad,” and do battle against our triteness, shallowness, and dullness – – all signs of indifferent hearts and minds. We can resist our indifference and lukewarmness and CHOOSE to “turn away from sin and live out the Gospel” by embracing the 3 classic practices of Lent—prayer, fasting and almsgiving. But as we develop our Lenten “plan” and make resolutions regarding these 3 pillars of the spiritual life, bear in mind that Lent should be about […]
Christina’s next FB Live Event will be focused upon 4 ways that will help you prepare to have a grace-filled Lenten season. Join us LIVE on Facebook on Thursday, February 28th at 7:30pm. To participate in this LIVE event, simply go to the Say Yes to Holiness Facebook page on Thursday, February 28th at 7:30pm. Hope to see you there!
Merry Christmas! (And yes, it is STILL Christmas!) I hope this finds you still rejoicing in the great gift of Him who humbled Himself to become like us as a babe in the manger at Bethlehem! My post today is an outgrowth of my spiritual mentorship ministry work, and the great need that I have seen for people to come to know and understand and embrace that the reality that God loves us so deeply, passionately and profoundly, that He desires nothing more than to love us, and to that end, He invites us to enter into life with, in […]
Today was spent in quiet reflection as I prepared to make my promises to become a member of the AVI (Apostles of Interior Life) Family. In the midst of quiet time in Adoration with Jesus, all of us who were gathered together were encouraged to reflect upon not only the promises that we would be making, but even more so, to reflect upon what does it mean to be family? One of the AVI Family members shared some wisdom given by Dr Greg and Lisa Popcak, national speakers on issues of marriage and family, in which the Popcaks suggest that […]
A few days ago, I wrote about how much I love November, and how this is a truly special time in the life of the Catholic Church. Particularly because it is a month when we celebrate the fullness of the Communion of Saints. We begin by celebrating all who have completed their journey and are in heaven with God on All Saints Day, and then we commemorate all the holy souls who have gone before us on All Souls Day, before spending the remainder of the month praying for those same souls. I have to admit, with the shortening of […]
I absolutely ADORE the end of October and the month of November. Probably not for the reasons that you might expect though, as my reasons have not much to do with the usual ghosts or goblins or spooky graveyards, but everything to do with the Communion of Saints. What is the Communion of Saints, you ask? Well, simplest explanation is that it’s everybody–the best, the better and the trying to be holy men and women. The best are the Saints. These are people who are in union with God and have allowed their love for God and God’s love for […]