Podcast

Oh, that today you would hear his voice: “Harden not your hearts as at Meribah, as in the day of Massah in the desert, where your fathers tempted me; they tested me though they had seen my works.”Psalm 95: 7-9Do I really want to be tested? Does anyone? The answer to my Sunday morning rumination is obvious. “God, please don’t test me too muc...

“Your ways, O Lord, make known to me; teach me your paths, guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior.”Psalm 25:4-5Last week we talked about the first intuition we had of God’s presence in our lives—and how that insight matches perfectly with our own very human desire for fulfillment. Today, I’d like to dwell on the sc...

This compelling account of the life-and-death struggles migrants face in the United States demonstrates how broken the system is, and the deep harm that it does to struggling families and communities. Author and lawyer Linda Dakin-Grim, who represents children and families pro-bono in immigration proceedings, offers a proposal informed by Catholic ...

“Come, and you will see. “So they went and saw where Jesus was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about four in the afternoon.”’John 1:39John’s Gospel is so precise about the exact time the apostles stayed with Jesus and came to understand that he was the Messiah. How did John know that?I have always been amused by this sc...

“Come to me heedfully, listen, that you may have life.”Isaiah 55:3Today’s scripture offers calming words for troubled souls. So many of us are grieving losses and setbacks after a painful year that left no one unchallenged. Yet we know that God is with us.The invitation to life—eternal life—is the central core of our faith. The best way I...

Ilia Delio, OSF, a Franciscan Sister of Washington, DC, is Josephine C. Connelly Endowed Chair in Theology at Villanova University and founder of the Center for Christogenesis Her many books include Christ in Evolution, The Emergent Christ, The Unbearable Wholeness of Being, and Birth of a Dancing Star: My Journey from Cradle Catholic to Cyborg Chr...

“See, darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples; but upon you the Lord shines, and over you appears his glory.”Isaiah 60:2Our faith tells us, and Isaiah does, too: No matter the circumstance of our lives, we are surrounded in God’s glory. May the light of the Lord shine upon you today on the feast of the Epiphany!Please ac...

“Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another.”(Colossians 3:12)The celebrations that surround Christmas have been wonderful—liturgies, caroling, being with family and friends. But I still have to ask myself: What exactl...

“Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.”(Luke 1:38)Pausing at the words of Luke’s Gospel makes me ask the “What if” question of the day: What indeed if Mary had said “no”?...

Jim Forest has spent a lifetime in the cause of peace and reconciliation. In this memoir he traces his story through his intimate encounters with some of the great peacemakers of our time, including Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, Daniel Berrigan, Henri Nouwen, and Thich Nhat Hanh. The son of ardent Communists, his remarkable journey led to his enlistm...

“The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, to announce a year of favor from the Lord.”(Isaiah 61:1-2)...

“We await new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you await these things, be eager to be found without spot or blemish before him, at peace.”(2 Peter 3:14)There is a difference between waiting and being idle. One act can have purpose; the other doesn’t. That’s an important lesson to keep in mind ...