Author Archives: stceceliastgabriel

posted 5/12/20 Recently, a friend of mine very thoughtfully gave me a new biography about Dorothy Day (1897-1980), who was one of the founders of the Catholic Worker Movement, along with her friend and mentor Peter Maurin.  I became interested in Day when I was in seminary through a friend of mine who had a greatContinue reading “A Weird Catholic”

posted 5/9/20 Last week, Don Shula, the winningest coach in NFL history, passed away at the age of 90.  Shula is best known for being the head coach of the Miami Dolphins, leading them to two Super Bowl titles, including a perfect undefeated season in 1972.  He also won an NFL championship in 1968 as head coach ofContinue reading “Don Shula”

posted 5/8/20 I remember a conversation with a man named Jim who was sharing with me his life story.  He told me that he grew up as a Protestant, but during his young adulthood he found himself kind of lost, drifting from the faith of his childhood and wondering what life was about.  After some years of real struggles and some darkness, he found himself reading aContinue reading “Faith”

posted 5/7/20 When I was a kid there was an unwritten (though oft-spoken) rule in our house that when you came home from Tashua Pool in Trumbull you were to hang out your towel to dry in the backyard.  I usually complied with this rule, through there were times when I would just leave it on the floor in theContinue reading “Revealing Ourselves”

posted 5/6/20 There’s an organization in Jamaica called Mustard Seed Communities that provides homes for people with severe disabilities.  In my last assignment, the members of the parish youth group would go down there each year to volunteer as part of a mission trip.  It was not easy work, but it was very rewarding to see how the teenagers fromContinue reading “Lessons from Mustard Seed”

posted 5/5/20 So, let me tell you how my life has been ever since I published my reflection on the sin of acedia yesterday.  I wasted at least an hour watching YouTube videos and checking my Twitter feed, I fell asleep during my holy hour in church, I mindlessly snacked on junk food in the rectory kitchen instead of making a proper dinner for myself, andContinue reading “Acedia: Take Two”

posted 5/4/20 When I was the Vocation Director of the Diocese one of the things I was expected to do was have what’s called a “social media presence,” which meant posting content on platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.  I quickly realized how social media can easily suck up all your attention and waste huge amounts of time with things that are not very edifying.  While usingContinue reading “Acedia”

When I was in seminary, one of the priests on the faculty told us a story about his first pilgrimage to the Holy Land when he was a seminarian.  He and the rest of the group were near the Sea of Galilee and as the tour guide was telling them about the site they were visiting, theyContinue reading “The Good Shepherd”