Thanks to movies, books and popular legend, St. Joan of Arc seems more familiar than many saints because we have seen her depicted as a male soldier, wearing military armor. But did you know that this courageous peasant girl from the 15th century, who helped drive the English from French territory during their long-running war, [...]
Archbishop Leonard P. Blair This edition of the Transcript is devoted in great part to the re-cent archdiocesan pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and I would like to share with you some reflections on what it means to be a pilgrim, on what it means to be on a pilgrimage. This is [...]
Story by Sister Janet Schaeffler Years ago I asked a friend why he thought we didn’t celebrate the Ascension more enthusiastically. His reply was because it didn’t fall on a Sunday. (Now, years later, some dioceses celebrate the Ascension on Sunday.) It sounded funny at the time, but recently, reflecting on the meaning of the [...]
Story by Pete Burak For spring break my senior year of high school, I went to Mexico. Some of you might immediately envision wild beach parties and scenarios unfit for the pages of FAITH magazine. No, I went to the garbage dumps outside Mexico City and a poor, inner-city Catholic parish – which would [...]
Story by By Michelle DiFranco I love candles. They symbolize life, love and celebration. And I love burning them in my home, but I’ve had to resort to enjoying them only when the boys are out of the house. Between my husband being afraid of the house burning down, and my son playing with [...]
Story by Bishop Boyea Any parent would be willing to die for his or her child. But who would be willing to die for someone on death row, if we had a death row here in Michigan? Not many, I would guess. Christ has died. This is the incredible mystery of Holy Week. Jesus died for us [...]
By Veronica Szczygiel I love Holy Week. I always look forward to these days steeped in tradition, which quickly unfold the events leading up to the greatest sacrifice and miracle on earth – Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. His victory over death and gift of eternal life show us how truly beloved we are to him. [...]
Story by Bishop Ronald A. Hicks During this Easter season, we boldly proclaim that indeed, Christ is risen! We celebrate that Jesus is truly alive and accompanies us. It is His passion, death and resurrection that welcome us into a new and eternal life. What is your favorite Scripture traditionally proclaimed during the Easter Season? [...]
Story by Joe Pisani Jesus wept. But did Jesus smile? We know Jesus wept because the Bible tells us so, but there are no accounts of Jesus smiling. However, I’m convinced he smiled. Someone whose heart is filled with infinite love has to smile because he can’t keep all that love inside. Let me share [...]
By Elizabeth Solsburg, with Doug Culp Before he became pope, Pope Benedict was well-known as the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, an office that was formerly called the Inquisition. He also is, according to those who knew him best, a humble and gentle man, an accomplished pianist who loves Mozart [...]