Podcast

Today begins the season of expectant, joyful waiting, the season we call Advent. As we do each year, we light the first of four candles this morning—one for each Sunday of Advent that will take us home on Christmas Day. We think of Advent as a time of anticipation—waiting for the Christ Child and preparing for his birth. But Advent is a time of...

Simone Campbell, SSS, is the executive director of NETWORK, a nonprofit Catholic social justice lobby in Washington, DC. In 2012, Sister Simone organized NETWORK’s Nuns on the Bus campaign that has attracted an avalanche of media attention in the United States and other parts of the world. Sister Simone, a long-standing member of the Sisters of S...

“Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of the least brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”Matthew 25:40Yes, it has been a year of pain and sorrow. More than we imagined. But as people of faith we are schooled in gratitude. We give thanks for the gift of life and the gift of salvation. And we give thanks for each other. We mark Th...

“But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness, for that day to overtake you like a thief. For all of you are children of the light and children of the day.”1 Thessalonians 5:5Paul reassures us, over and again. We are children of the light, children of the day, walking with confidence and humility in the footsteps of Our Lord.The light Pau...

“Stay awake and be ready! For you do not know on what day your Lord will come.”(Matthew 24:42)“When you least expect it…” Isn’t that what we’re often told? Just relax. When you least expect it, some great fortune will come your way. I look at this everyday wisdom a little differently: Blessings are gifts from God. But they don’t com...

This book, written prior to the pandemic, reflects on the role of “earthquakes”—literal and metaphorical: times like the present when history trembles beneath our feet. Such times may overturn empires, structures of power, and the stability of our personal lives. Yet, as Rabbi Waskow writes in a special preface, “this specific ‘earthquake...

If you think of yourself as one of “God’s children” as John tells it, then you can give yourself an important title, too, worthy of your devotion to the Gospel. That title is saint. Today on the feast of All Saints, we celebrate the union of lives well lived in the presence of Our Lord. We honor the giants from history who inspire us—I thin...

Jesus has a way of making it simple for us. In today’s Gospel, he provides the only two instructions we will ever need to enter the kingdom of heaven: love God completely; and love one another as much as you love yourself. Easy enough to say. But not always easy to do, especially when we’re confronted with anything but love. Is Jesus asking too...

“Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all you lands. Tell his glory among the nations; among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.”(Psalm 96:1-3)You can take center stage today. This is your moment to “sing a new song” by sharing God’s love with the world.World Mission Sunday is an affirmation that we are chosen not necessarily to do...

Whether in a local community, an educational institution, or a global organization, the key to addressing the current crisis in American public life is genuine moral leadership. Moral leadership is anchored in intellectual and ethical integrity, a vision of and commitment to the public good, and personal investment in transformative community....

Though Pope Francis remains one of the most popular figures in the world, his pontificate has stirred up powerful opposition. Some reject his openness to divorced and remarried Catholics and the priority he places on mercy above rigid doctrine. Others reject his outspoken defense of migrants, his critiques of capitalism, and calls to protect the en...

I can’t argue with today’s wisdom from the Book of Psalms. But there is another prayer that never fails to comfort me when times take an unexpected turn—and this year has been no exception. I listen to the words of our patroness of missions, St. Teresa of Ávila, and I find God’s peace. Here’s what she says:Let nothing disturb you,
Let ...