Everyone should know that angels exist. But how would you react to meeting an angel who descended to earth like lightning before your very eyes? If you were superhuman or supremely holy you might sit down and have a conversation with him about his “dazzling robes” as the Gospel of Luke describes them (Luke [...]
The unique American musical tradition of Negro spirituals is nowhere better exemplified than in this heartfelt meditation on Christ’s Crucifixion, Were You There When They Crucified My Lord, by Jessye Norman. Ms. Norman died in 2009 at the age of 74 after a long and distinguished career as an operatic soprano with four Grammy [...]
Eleven of the twelve Apostles betrayed, denied, or abandoned the Lord Jesus in His moment of deepest need – Calvary. Mary, His mother, stood by Him until the bitter end. According to John’s Gospel (19:25-27), Our Lady stood by the Cross of Jesus during the entire length of His suffering. Tradition adds that she [...]
The Church has always proclaimed the Cross of Christ as the mystical center of everything that exists. It is the truth of everything in the created world, the purification of the sins of all mankind, and the force of grace that conquers all evil. The Cross is easy to find, though not easy to [...]
Roman Catholics venerate the extraordinary 4th century poet and writer known as St. Ephrem the Syrian. St. Ephrem is a canonized saint in both the Roman Catholic and the Syriac Orthodox Church and was named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict XV in 1920. Ephrem served as a deacon in his homeland [...]
A few years ago I had the privilege of standing in the sacristy of a Ukrainian church watching a priest friend of mine prepare for Mass. The wonderful liturgies of the Church’s eastern rites (the Byzantine, Maronite, Ukrainian and others) express a richness and complexity of worship that contrasts with the simplicity of the [...]
Do angels intervene in sacraments? We know from our earliest instructions in the faith that angels exist and are concerned about our welfare. Anyone who has learned the traditional Guardian Angel Prayer (“Angel of God”) knows that they are sent “to light, to guard, to rule and guide” us throughout life. (See the text [...]
The 19th century poet Christina Rossetti (1830-1894) gave the world a great gift in her masterful poem about the birth of Christ, “In the Bleak Midwinter”. Certain verses of the poem are immediately familiar to most Christians through its celebrated musical setting by Gustav Holst (1874-1934). Both poet and composer were English-born despite their [...]
The life story of the German Franciscan priest, Fr. Gereon Goldmann, is one for the ages. Some of his tales of miraculous escapes from certain death, victory in the face of overwhelming odds, and the power of faith and prayer are so extraordinary that one must see them in the perspective of a whole [...]
During the Advent season, we bring you an inspirational piece of Renaissance music that is based on a quote from St. John’s gospel. Nearly five hundred years old, this hymn has a timeless beauty that will be a gift to our world for as long as there are voices to sing it. But first [...]