Author Archives: stceceliastgabriel

Thy Daily Bread

posted 7/30/20 There’s a reality television show on cable called Hoarders, which depicts the struggles of people who suffer with Compulsive Hoarding Disorder, which leads them to pack their homes with things such as newspapers, cans, books, and clothes.  Their compulsion makes their living situation unhealthy and unsafe and causes great distress to their families.  The show brings psychologists and counselors to speak with people who are dealing with theContinue reading “Thy Daily Bread”

Thy Will Be Done

posted 7/28/20 The fourth petition in the Lord’s Prayer is: “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”  What is heaven like?  Popular culture often depicts it as a dreadfully boring place filled with clouds and angels quietly playing harps.  When we think of heaven, we know it to be the place where God’s will is always done and always done perfectly. Those popularContinue reading “Thy Will Be Done”

The Pilgrimage of St. James

posted 7/25/20 Going on pilgrimage is an ancient Christian practice.  There are old texts from Bishops encouraging the practice of pilgrimage among the faithful going back to the 4th century.  Pilgrimages are not vacations, but physical journeys that manifest the spiritual journeys of those who desire to encounter God in the places where He has made His presence known in a particular way.  The mostContinue reading “The Pilgrimage of St. James”

Thy Kingdom Come

posted 7/23/20 This third petition of the Lord’s Prayer is an expression of longing that God the Father’s reign extend over all things.  It’s a curious petition, considering we profess faith in God who is all-powerful, all-knowing, and omnipresent.  That means His reign must already extend over all of His creation.  Yet, it is obvious that things are not as they should be.  You don’t have to beContinue reading “Thy Kingdom Come”

Hallowed Be Thy Name

posted 7/21/20 Familiarity and awe, in tight conjunction, are the mark of Christian prayer.  – Fr. Simeon Leiva-Merikakis In this second petition from the Lord’s Prayer, Christ Jesus instructs us to say: “Hallowed be thy name.”  It is the expression of a wish that the name of God be treated with reverence, as something holy.  It is inContinue reading “Hallowed Be Thy Name”

Good Teacher

posted 7/18/20 Robert P. George is the McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton University, where he has taught since 1985.  The grandson of immigrants who worked in the coal mines of West Virginia, George is known as one of the nation’s leading conservative intellectuals.  As a practicing Catholic who holds views considered “conservative” on many issues, George’s outspoken critiques of abortion, same-sex marriage, euthanasia, pornography, large-scale government welfare programs, and human trafficking often putContinue reading “Good Teacher”

Our Father

posted 7/16/20 I remember like it was yesterday.  I was in fourth grade and me and my friends were watching The Empire Strikes Back, which everybody knows is the best of all the Star Wars movies.  In the climactic scene, an under-prepared Luke Skywalker has just had an epic lightsaber fight with Darth Vader, who has cornered him and cut off his hand (super-traumatic!).  AndContinue reading “Our Father”

The Lily of the Mohawks

posted 7/14/20 Today is the feast day of St. Kateri Tekakwitha, the first Native American to be canonized a saint.  St. Kateri was born in 1656, the daughter of a war chief of the Mohawk tribe and a Christian Algonquin mother, near present-day Auriesville, NY.  It was in that same area, 10 years earlier, where the French missionaries, St.Continue reading “The Lily of the Mohawks”