Story by Joe Pisani The New Year is upon us, and if you’re like me, you’re too old to believe in New Year’s resolutions. However, lately I’ve met several people, including some of my students, who told me their goal is to become “the best version of myself.” You’ve probably heard that term before because [...]

Story by Sister Ann Shields   As I travel around this country speaking in so many parishes and dioceses, and as I participate in large and small conferences bringing Catholics together from all walks of life and nationalities, one of the sad and difficult realizations I have had to face is this: Many do not [...]

Blessed Carlo Acutis is the patron saint of the first year of the National Eucharistic Revival and one of its intercessors. This initiative began in June 2022 and will run through its culmination in the National Eucharistic Congress in July of 2024. The U.S. Bishops were presented with a first-class relic of Blessed Carlo by [...]

By Most Rev. Bishop Kenneth Povish When you think in December about Catholic devotions and practices that have fallen into disuse, the one that comes to my mind at once is the custom that prevailed in Polish-American homes in my boyhood and well into my adult years. It was the Sharing of the Wafer on [...]

Story by Sister Ann Shields I remember when I was a child that my father built a crèche out of balsam wood. We most often had three smaller Christmas trees that provided a backdrop for the manger. The figures were put in the last week before Christmas. For my family, it was just a custom, [...]

Story by Michelle DiFranco This fall, my husband and I hosted our first-ever Oktoberfest gathering, which included every German sausage and beer known to men in lederhosen. With online ordering and a couple of trips to a specialty German butcher, the preparation was rather quick and easy. But we still needed a German dessert for [...]

Story by Sister Ann Shield Somewhere between 1942 and 1945, my uncles made several visits home from the war front in France and Germany. Those times indelibly imprinted on my young memory; five long years of watching and waiting and hoping and praying – that our brothers and uncles, sons and friends would return safely. [...]

When the blessing of the Advent Wreath is celebrated in the home, it is appropriate that it be blessed by a parent or another member of the family. All make the sign of the cross as the leader says: Our help is in the name of the Lord. Response (R/.) Who made heaven and earth. [...]

By Doug Culp The sacred Scriptures teach us a great deal about the way God operates in the world. Chief among these seems to be surprise. Scripture teaches us to expect the unexpected when it comes to experiencing God. Norms and predictability are simply not applicable as God repeatedly shatters the limits of the narrow [...]

By Michelle DiFranco Dresden, Germany, is, without a doubt, one of the most festive places to be during the Christmas season. That is because it’s home to Striezelmarkt, one of the first Christmas markets, dating back to the early 1400s. Since then, hundreds of large and small markets have popped up to cover a “Christmas [...]