Our failures can lead to progress in the interior life so long as we react to them with humility and a more resolute determination to follow Jesus. Perseverance not avoiding falling at all costs, but rather daring to get up again and brush ourselves off when we fall short. The only one never wounded never...
There is no physical or moral misery that Jesus cannot cure. He asks only that we go to Him with a heart dilated by faith, and with complete trust in His all-powerful, merciful love.
In today’s Gospel Jesus says, “Come to me” (Matthew 11:28). Let us take Him at His word and immediately make our way to Him. Do not delay! He personally summons everyone to come to Him and to do so exactly as we are – in real need of divine mercy, healing and peace. Friends, Jesus...
“Most blessed are you among women” (Luke 1:42). Spoken perfectly to Mary, God’s Word speaks also to us. Through Mary, God speaks to the best that is in us. We are called to bless God and to bless all life. Mary perfectly – immaculately – displays this. As the sign of divine blessing, Mary is...
In his autobiography Confessions, Augustine (+ 430) gratefully acknowledges the importance of Ambrose (+ 397) in his journey to faith. So I came to Milan and to Ambrose its Bishop…. He was a devout worshiper of You, Lord, and at the same time his energetic preaching provided Your people with the choicest wheat and the...
God wants our living free from pompousness and self-promotion. We are the moon reflecting the sun’s brilliance. Or like John the Baptist, the voice proclaiming Jesus most important. Simple, ordinary lives, seeking to do what is right, trying to do good to all and carrying out our daily tasks honestly. Living humbly is how we...
The example of John the Baptist encourages us to retreat into the interior desert of our heart. Confidently ask the Lord to help us to quiet our incessant chatter about useless things so to love more the things of heaven.
Crowds of people streamed to hear John the Baptist, a celebrity of his day. Yet, he never tried to draw people to himself. On the contrary, he tirelessly pointed away from himself to the “Lamb of God.” And when the crowds turned from him to follow Jesus, he rejoiced as “the friend of the Bridegroom”....
In a letter written to his colleague Saint Ignatius of Loyola (d. 1556), we get a glimpse of the love of God and neighbor seizing Saint Francis Xavier (d. 1552) and the great challenge faced in China: We have visited the villages of the new converts who accepted the Christian religion a few years ago....
In today’s First Reading, the prophet Isaiah redirects our sights upward. “On this mountain the LORD of hosts will provide for all peoples” (Isaiah 25:6). Elevate expectations. Ask for God’s help and express your desire to delight in the unimaginable feast He has readied for you. Don’t settle for less than the mountain top place which...
