Entries for March 2021

Bishop Joseph E. Strickland Published: March 28, 2021 Source I was pleased to be invited to reflect on Holy Week, the week of weeks for us as Catholics. Beginning with Passion, or Palm, Sunday, and continuing until the Lord’s Resurrection on Easter Sunday, these days are truly sacred to us in the Roman Catholic Tradition. It is important to note that, as with the season of Lent, Holy Week is a liturgical practice which grows out of the witness of Sacred Scripture. As Catholics, it is important to underscore the connections between Scripture and our liturgical cel...

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Father Raymond J. de Souza March 31, 2021 Source A reflection on St. Joseph by Father Raymond de Souza for your Holy Week contemplations. In his apostolic letter for the beginning of the Year of St. Joseph, Pope Francis cites Polish author Jan Dobraczyński. The Holy Father explains that his novel, The Shadow of the Father, “uses the evocative image of a shadow to define Joseph. In his relationship to Jesus, Joseph was the earthly shadow of the heavenly Father: he watched over him and protected him, never leaving him to go his own way.” (Patris Corde #7) ...

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The first of several reflections on St. Joseph by Father Raymond de Souza for your Holy Week contemplations. Father Raymond J. de Souza March 30, 2021 Source In his apostolic letter for the beginning of the Year of St. Joseph, Pope Francis cites Polish author Jan Dobraczyński. The Holy Father explains that his novel, The Shadow of the Father, “uses the evocative image of a shadow to define Joseph. In his relationship to Jesus, Joseph was the earthly shadow of the heavenly Father: he watched over him and protected him, never leaving him to go his own way.&rdquo...

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Fr. Justin Braun Published: March 19, 2021 Source In this year of St. Joseph called for at the universal level of the Church by Pope Francis and locally by Bishop Joseph Strickland, we are being invited to familiarize ourselves with the person of Joseph, to ask his intercession more frequently, and to imitate him in our own lives. The sacred liturgy is always the safeguard of the Church’s teaching, and specifically in her prayers of the Mass and the rituals, we see the unfolding of our theology in practice. A privileged place to see this is in the Preface Prayer,...

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By Becky Roach Source Good Friday is the most solemn day of the year for Christians. This is the day when we remember Christ’s death on the cross for us. We remember the suffering He endured for our sake. We are reminded of the depths of His love for us. Do not let Good Friday go by as just any other day of the year. Take time to contemplate all that Christ’s death on the cross signifies for us. This isn’t a day for Easter egg hunts or last-minute shopping for Easter Sunday. Set this day aside to grow near to the Lord. We’ve created a list ...

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By Teresa Darby March 9, 2021 Original Article When can I enter and see the face of God? (Psalm 42:3) An opportunity to experience the sacred art of icon writing is finally available for East Texans. Typically, we glance at icons with the impression that it is just another picture. However, an icon is not meant to be viewed as a painting on the wall of a home. Icons are much more than that; they are often referred to as “Windows to Heaven”. They call us to prayer, meditation and a response of faith. When we are still before an icon, we can feel the prese...

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March 5, 2021 Original Article Years ago, I decided I wanted to learn how to play the guitar. The idea of sitting down and strumming some tunes while sitting on the porch sounded so attractive. I am not at all musically inclined, and I grossly underestimated how difficult picking up a new skill would be. After a few painstaking hours of trying to learn some chords and some very sore fingers, I decided that maybe this was not for me. As wonderful as the idea sounded, the process to get there seemed impossible. The time required to acquire the necessary skill set was more...

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by Bob Waruszewski Original Article St. Joseph often slips under the radar because of his quiet demeanor and hidden life. However, he has much to teach us about growing in holiness. Here are 5 reasons to discover St. Joseph. 1. He is the Patron Saint of Workers. As men work takes up a great portion of our lives. Often we struggle to work in a way that honors God. St. Joseph can teach us how to work well if we ask him. One way to do this is to start your work day with a prayer to St. Joseph. St. Joseph is also good to invoke if you are having difficul...

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the 10th commandment: vague placeholder or key to happiness? by Jason Craig Original Article Have you ever thought that the ten commandments kind of start strong and peter out?  It’s like listening to a sermon that starts strong (“You shall have no gods before Me!”), gets appropriately practical (“Honor your parents”), but then gets so broad that it sounds like a platitude.  I’m speaking of that last commandment, “you shall not covet thy neighbor’s goods.”  The ninth is a touch more specific –...

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By Robert L. Judge, M.A. March 2, 2021 Original Article This Lenten season, before we take up the usual practices of not eating dark chocolate and drinking fine Bordeaux wine (which are certainly severe enough abstentions that one could have faithfully completed these as Lenten penances), perhaps we could use Lent as an opportunity to increase in learning and turn away from evil. In suggesting this and in keeping with the year of St. Joseph, we can turn to the man whom God called just and saw fit to be the guardian and protector of Christ and his mother. St. Joseph, th...

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What You Gaze On Is What You Become by Sam Guzman Original Article How many times have you vowed to exercise more, eat better, or get more sleep? Or on a spiritual level, promised yourself that you were going to pray more consistently, practice certain virtues, or embrace asceticism more willingly? Yet, when it comes time to move idea into action, from commitment to practice, something within us freezes and resists. Before long, we’ve abandoned our commitment and find ourselves frustrated and depressed. When we think about growing in virtue, we usual...

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Elizabeth Slaten February 26, 2021 Original Artcicle Then the king will say to those on his right, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me…Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” Matthew 25:34-36, 40 In this passage from Matthew&rsquo...

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‘Veritatis Splendor’ will enliven the faith of Catholics in the Lone Star State and around the world. On nearly 600 acres of land, the Catholic center of Veritatis Splendor will be built near Tyler, Texas. (photo: Veritatis Splendor website) Kathy Schiffer February 27, 2021 Original Article “This is the choice of our moment: whether to be Catholic in the fullest sense or to let that option fade, for the foreseeable future, into darkness.” — from the foreword to Light and Leaven: The Challenge of the Laity in the Twenty-First Centur...

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